The formal request is likely to be put to Canberra within days to gain a practical outcome by limiting the supply of materials and weapons to the Iranian military force,as well as securing a symbolic show of unity with Israel as it comes under attack.
In this September 21,2016,file photo,Iran’s Revolutionary Guard troops march in a military parade in Tehran,Iran.AP
Israel’s deputy ambassador to Australia,Chris Cantor,said the issue had been raised with the government in the past but needed swift action because of the unprecedented Iranian decision to launch 300 drones and missiles against Israeli soil on Saturday.
“The aim here is to minimise the Iranian threat,the Iranian capability,” he said in Canberra on Monday.
The call sets up a test for Labor as the Coalition says it is “beyond time” to label the Revolutionary Guard as terrorists,while federal officials have cautioned in the past that it was difficult under Australian law to designate an arm of a government in this way.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the Iranian attack on Israel and raised the possibility of further action against Iran in the wake of sanctions against key individuals in its government,but he played down the idea of expelling Iranian diplomats from Australia.
A government spokesperson said Iranian Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi was called into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on Monday to hear Australia’s condemnation of the attack.
“The IRGC has long been a threat to international security and the Albanese government is intent on making it face consequences for its actions,” she said.
Cantor said Israel was not asking Australia to close its embassy in Tehran or expel diplomats because the priority was to act against the military capability of the Revolutionary Guard.
The United States has treated the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist group since 2019 and has urged the European Union and the United Kingdom to do the same,saying this would make it harder for the Iranian force to gain material,supplies and weapons.
The guards’ corp includes military operations including Iran’s air force and navy but also comprises the Qods Force,which supplies training,funding,and weapons to terrorist groups.
In Australia,a Senate foreign affairs committee chaired by Liberal senator Clare Chandler called in February last year for the Iranian group to be treated as terrorists because of the human rights abuses in Iran,amid protests over the country’s treatment of women.
Israeli authorities estimate the Iranian forces launched 170 drones,120 ballistic missiles and 30 cruise missiles from sites in Iran as well as from proxies in Iraq,Yemen and Lebanon on Saturday.
None of the drones and cruise missiles reached their targets and 99 per cent of the attack was halted,but some of the ballistic missiles could not be intercepted. Israel said there were no fatalities.The New York Times reported on Monday that a seven-year-old girl was injured in the Negev desert.
Middle East in unchartered waters after Iran launches unprecedented air attack on Israel.
“The events reflect the Iranian obsession to destroy the state of Israel,” said Cantor.
“The war that is ongoing is a war to defend the state of Israel.”
“You can only imagine what would have happened if Iran possessed nuclear weapons.”
Israel gained assistance from the United States,the United Kingdom,France and Jordan to intercept the drones and missiles.
US President Joe Biden spoke to fellow G7 leaders in the wake of the attack to issue a joint statement that expressed solidarity with Israel.
“With its actions,Iran has further stepped toward the destabilization of the region and risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation. This must be avoided,” said the statement from Canada,France,Germany,Italy,Japan,the UK and the US.
A spokesman for the Iranian embassy in Canberra did not respond to a request for comment.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said the government should support stronger action against Iran including the designation of the Revolutionary Guard.
“It is beyond time for the Albanese government to act on our call for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp to be listed by Australia as a terrorist organisation,” he said.
“The IRGC speak like terrorists,collaborate with terrorists and act like terrorists. If our laws need changing to undertake such listing,then they should be changed ASAP.”
A key question is whether Australian law allows authorities to designate a government agency as a terrorist organisation,raising the possibility that federal parliament would have to agree on an amendment to make it possible to act against the Iranian force.
Albanese emphasised the danger to the region from the Iranian strikes.
“This escalation is a grave threat to the security not just of Israel,but of the entire region,” he told ABC’s Radio National.
“It risks greater instability and devastation across the Middle East. We continue to support regional security,including that of Israel. We want to see there be less conflict,not more.”
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