Public health organisation votes to condemn ongoing genocide in Gaza

Marie McInerney writes:

Australia’s peak public health body has passed a formal resolution on Israel’s war against Gaza, condemning the “ongoing genocidal assault on the Palestinian people” and the targeting of women, children, aid workers and health workers in contravention of humanitarian law.

Published in full below, the statement was passed by Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) members at the organisation’s annual meeting on Tuesday in Wollongong.

The statement makes 10 powerful commitments, including to support the Australian Government’s intention to recognise the state of Palestine, and for the PHAA to advocate for the Government to halt the supply of weapons and weapon components which support the Israel Defence Force (IDF).

More widely it calls for the immediate release of Palestinian health workers held illegally by Israeli security forces and for an immediate end to the targeted attacks on journalists and the opening of media access to Gaza and the West Bank.

It commits to joining other human rights bodies in holding medical practitioners accountable for their complicity in human rights abuses of Palestinians held in Israeli detention.

The statement also commits to support PHAA members who are taking on advocacy as a public health responsibility, “should they be victimised or intimidated for speaking out consistent with this resolution”.

Leading public health advocate Fran Baum, Professor of Health Equity at the University of Adelaide’s Stretton Institute, was one of the proponents of the resolution and said she was “thrilled” it was passed by members.

“As a past national president and Life Member of PHAA, I want to congratulate PHAA members for being on the right side of history and taking this moral stand in favour of the people of Gaza and Palestine,” she said in a post on LinkedIn.

Vote split

However, the vote was not unanimous, with 125 members voting for and 65 against.

One of the statement’s contentious aspects was a call for a boycott of Israeli pharmaceutical products.

The statement said the boycott of Israeli pharmaceutical products produced by Teva Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Jerusalem Pharmaceuticals, Biorap and Medstrada would serve as a non-violent step to put pressure on the Israeli Government and promote the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign.

However, concerns were raised about PHAA’s capacity and remit to the ten undertakings, including whether it could deliver on a commitment to financially or technically support the people of Palestine to restore their health system, and how a public health body could justify a recommendation to boycott of pharmaceutical products without a detailed understanding of the implications, or of viable alternatives.

The statement commits the PHAA to advising Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Health Minister Mark Butler of the resolution and to establishing a PHAA Members Working Group to support the executive in advancing its actions.

Full resolution on Gaza

As a public health association, we recognise the social, commercial and political determinants of health, as stated by the World Health Organization, that have severely impacted the morbidity and mortality of Palestinians both pre- and post- October 2023.

As such, we recognise the historical injustice that has prevailed over the last century whereby Palestinians were systematically deprived of their land and have lived under a system of state-sanctioned injustice, oppression and military occupation.

As an organisation we cannot remain silent (or neutral) in the face of such injustice based on the following documented information since October 2023:

• The atrocities committed by Hamas on 7 October 2023 can in no way be used to justify the ongoing genocidal assault on the Palestinian people such that by late June 2025 more than 55,000 people had been killed in the Gaza Strip by the Israel Defence Force (IDF) according to the Gaza Health Ministry (1).
• The Lancet has noted that in recent conflicts, indirect deaths range from three to 15 times the number of direct deaths. Applying a conservative estimate of four indirect deaths per one direct death to the 37,396 deaths reported, it is not implausible to estimate that up to 200,000 or even more deaths could be attributable to the current conflict in Gaza (2). Ralph Nader has noted that it is in the interests of both Hamas and the IDF to understate the number of deaths (2) (3).
• An independent study in March 2025 suggested that more than 80,000 had been killed up to January 2025 (3).
• Targeting women, children, aid workers and health workers is a contravention of international humanitarian law (4).
• Despite this there is a public health crisis based on Israel’s deliberate destruction of the healthcare system and infrastructure essential for health and well-being (5) (6), by Israel committing the following war crimes:
  • Targeting and killing more than 1000 Gazan health workers (5), including the reported execution of 15 emergency medics on 23rd March 2025 (7).
  • Unjustly detaining health workers where they are subjected to psychological, physical and sexual torture designed to render them unable to work again (8).
  • Israel’s destruction of sexual and reproductive health services (8).
  • Restricting the entry into Gaza of essential humanitarian medical, clean water and food aid since October 2023 but, more acutely, blocking all such aid since 2 March 2025, resulting in dehydration, starvation and malnutrition and putting more than 2 million people in Gaza at risk of severe famine (9). Denial of humanitarian aid has included preventing polio vaccine from entering Gaza, placing 1000s of children at risk to death and lifelong disability (10).
  • Destruction of water and sanitation infrastructure resulting in the emergence of infectious diseases such as diarrhoea, hepatitis and polio (11).
  • Israel’s bombing campaign has severely damaged the environment, amounting to an ecocide, creating numerous future environmental hazards for the population of Gaza (12) (13).
• That a ceasefire agreed to in January 2025 was unilaterally broken by Israel on 18 March and that horrific attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure continue daily (5) (14).
• That the International Court of Justice has ruled there is a plausible case of genocide against Israel but that Israel has ignored the provisional measures the Court has issued (15) (16).
• That a number of human rights organisations, such as Amnesty International, international legal experts, Israeli historians and scholars of genocide have concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza based on independent investigations (11) (17-20).
• That killings and attacks in the West Bank, often under the protection of the IDF, have escalated since October 2023, despite a ruling by the International Court of Justice that Israel’s occupation of Gaza and the West Bank is illegal (21).

Therefore PHAA, hereby condemns:

• The ongoing genocide in Gaza and attacks by Israeli Forces and settlers on the West Bank.
• The complete siege of Gaza that has been in place since 2 March 2025 that is putting 2 million people at risk of famine. Instead of clearing the growing backlog of goods, Israeli authorities have rejected requests from dozens of NGOs to bring in lifesaving goods, citing that these are “not authorised to deliver aid”. In July alone, over 60 requests were denied under this justification. This obstruction has left millions of dollars’ worth of food, medicine, water and shelter items stranded in warehouses across Jordan and Egypt, while Palestinians are being starved (22).
• The targeted attacks, torture and murder of health and aid workers in Palestine and the destruction of the health system as a contravention of international humanitarian law.
• The targeted assassinations of journalists reporting from Gaza.
• The immediate and long-term damage to the physical and social environment in Gaza.
• The destruction of essential infrastructure, such as water and sanitation facilities, which are essential to good health and well-being.
• Support of any kind by the Australian Government and Australian organisations to the Israeli Defense Force including the supply of armaments and components.

And hereby calls for:

• The reinstatement of the January 2025 ceasefire agreement as a basis for a permanent ceasefire, the return of all prisoners and hostages and that the West Bank be included in such a ceasefire.
• The immediate restoration of safe water supplies and effective sanitation services, including an end to attacks on infrastructure required to deliver such services to Gaza.
• The reinstitution of humanitarian aid such as food, water, temporary homes and fuel but also including all medical supplies that prevent infectious diseases such as childhood vaccines.
• An immediate end to the attacks on health facilities and humanitarian staff, and the protection of health workers and the health system in line with international humanitarian law.
• An immediate end to the targeted attacks on journalists and the opening of media access to Gaza and the West Bank
• The immediate release of Palestinian health workers held illegally by Israeli security forces, many of whom have been subject to abuse and torture.
• The dismantling [of] the settlements in the West Bank and the walls and checkpoints fracturing Palestinian communities there
• The safe rebuilding of Gaza and restoration of a safe environment be initiated as soon as possible.
• The people of Palestine, in line with their right to self-determination, to be given the opportunity to shape their own future.
• The Israeli Government and its defence force to be held accountable for their actions in terms of the Rome Statute and international law.
• The Australian Government to cease any support for, or supplies to, the Israeli Defense Force.

We undertake, as PHAA, to:

• Support the Australian Government’s intention to recognise the state of Palestine.
• To advocate to the Australian Government to halt the supply of weapons and weapons components which support the IDF.
• Co-ordinate with other public health, environmental health and development aid groups to identify how PHAA as an organisation as well as its constituent members can support (e.g. financially or in technical support) the people of Palestine to restore the health system and the infrastructure necessary to sustain life and health.
• Raise awareness through encouraging members to organise talks on Gaza in their own institutions.
• Support members who are taking on advocacy as a public health responsibility, should they be victimised or intimidated for speaking out consistent with this resolution.
• Join other human rights organisations in holding medical practitioners accountable for their complicity in human rights abuses of Palestinians held in Israeli detention.
• Endorse and support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS) inclusive of the boycott of Israeli pharmaceutical products as produced by Teva Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Jerusalem Pharmaceuticals, Biorap and Medstrada, as a non-violent step to putting pressure on the Israeli Government to desist from its ongoing violation of international law in Palestine and promote the BDS campaign to its members.
• Write to the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Health Minister advising of the Resolution.
• Issue a press statement publicising the Association’s position and actions.
• Establish a PHAA Members Working Group to support the executive in the ongoing management of this issue.

This proposal is supported by PHAA members Peter Sainsbury, Fran Baum, Paul Laris, Peter Tait, Lynne Madden, David Legge, John Boffa, Donna Ah Chee, Stephen Fisher, Connie Mussolino, Julia Anaf, Adrian Heard.

References

1. David Remnick, Zones of Denial, New Yorker, August 4 2025, p31.
2. Z Jamaluddine et al, Traumatic injury mortality in the Gaza Strip from Oct 7, 2023, to June 30, 2024: a capture–recapture analysis, Lancet, Volume 405, Issue 10477p469-477, February 08, 2025.
3. S J Hoffman, Gaza: What is the actual death toll, and how can we be sure? Deutsche Welle,https://www.dw.com/en/gaza-what-is-the-actual-death-toll-and-how-can-we-be-sure/a-73136975
4. OHCHR: UN experts urge international community to step up pressure to end crimes and uphold international law, March 7, 2024, https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2024/03/un-experts-urge-international-community-step-pressure-end-crimes-uphold
5. Amnesty International, Israel’s apartheid system against Palestinians: Cruel system of domination and crime against humanity, 2022, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/5141/2022/en/ (accessed 18 April 2025).
6. Human Rights Watch, A threshold crossed: Israeli authorities and the crimes of apartheid and persecution, 2021. https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution (accessed 18 April 2025).
7. ABC News, 1 April, 2025, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-01/bodies-of-palestinian-medics-recovered-rafah/105120064
8. United Nations Human Rights Council, “More than a human can bear”: Israel’s systematic use of sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence since 7 October 2023, Independent.
9. United Nations, UN News, 7 April 2025, With aid blockade into its second month, misery deepens for Gazans, https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/04/1161951#:~:text=UNRWA%2C%20the%20UN%20agency%20for,commercial%20supplies%20into%20the%20enclave (accessed 18 April 2025).
10. The New Arab, 600,000 children in Gaza face paralysis as Israel blocks vaccine, https://www.newarab.com/news/600000-children-gaza-face-paralysis-israel-blocks-vaccine (accessed 18 April 2025).
11. Human Rights Watch, Extermination and acts of genocide, Israel deliberately depriving Palestinians in Gaza of Water. 2024
12. The Conversation, Israel’s bombing of Gaza caused untold environmental damage, recovery will take effort and time. 27 February 2025 https://theconversation.com/israels-bombing-of-gaza-caused-untold-environmental-damage-recovery-will-take-effort-and-time-245311 (accessed 18 April 2025).
13. Sustainability amid conflict: Gaza’s environmental, social, and economic struggles. Abdo Hassoun. J Environ Manage. 2025 Mar:376:124433. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.124433. Epub 2025 Feb 5.
14. United Nations. UN News. 2 April 2025. UN condemns killing of 1,000 people in Gaza since ceasefire collapse. https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/04/1161816 (cccessed 18 April 2025).
15. International Court of Justice: Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel) 26 January 2024. https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240126-ord-01-00-en.pdf (accessed on 18 April 2025).
16. International Commission of Jurists, Gaza: One month on, Israel fails to comply with the Order of the International Court of Justice. 26 February 2024 https://www.icj.org/gaza-one-month-on-israel-fails-to-comply-with-the-order-of-the-international-court-of-justice/ (accessed 18 April 2025).
17. Genocide in Gaza: Analysis of international law and its application to Israel’s Mmilitary actions since October 7, 2023. University Network for Human Rights. May 15, 2024.
18. Bearing Witness to the Israel-Gaza War. Lee Mordechai, Historian and Israeli citizen. December 5, 2024 (version 6.6) https://witnessing-the-gaza-war.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Gaza_English-v6.6.0-9.3.25.pdf (accessed 18 April 2025).
19. Gaza: Life in a Death Trap, Medicins Sans Frontiers, 19 December 2024, https://www.msf.org/life-death-trap-gaza-palestine (accessed 18 April 2025).
20. Amnesty International: “You feel like you are subhuman”, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/8668/2024/en/ (accessed 18 April 2025).
21. International Court of Justice, Legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem (advisory opinion), https://www.icj-cij. org/sites/default/files/case-related/186/186-20240719-adv-01-00-en.pdf (accessed 18 April 2025).
22. Norwegian Refugee Council, August 13, 2025, https://www.nrc.no/news/2025/august/gaza-israel-threatens-to-ban-major-aid-organizations-as-starvation-deepens
23. Pearls and Irritations, August 20, 2025. https://johnmenadue.com/post/2025/08/open-letter-to-journalists-on-the-vast-undercount-of-deaths-and-serious-injuries-in-gaza/

• Note, references have been edited for style reasons