Today marks the second anniversary of a violent and cowardly attack on civilians and the beginning of one of the great humanitarian calamities of our times. Two years ago, we watched on in horror as militants launched attacks deep into Israel, engaging in acts of unmitigated and unrestricted violence. People were murdered in their homes and young people enjoying a music festival had their lives cut short. We know that hundreds of civilians were killed that day—many of them children. Many more were injured, and all who were exposed to the violence will carry the trauma of that day for the rest of their lives. This violence against civilians was, by its nature, unprovoked. There is no justification for the deliberate killing of civilians.

I recognise the significance of this day for Jewish people everywhere and those in my electorate of Bean. Their pain and outrage is more than understandable. The Jewish community have a right to feel safe and secure wherever they are. And, in the face of the unacceptable rise of antisemitism, I commit myself to always standing up for this community. Today, we remember the 251 hostages taken by the militants, particularly those who were killed in captivity. We remember the horrors that the hostages endured and acknowledge the pain felt by their loved ones. The remaining hostages must be released.

Importantly, today also marks the beginning of the response of Israel to this act of terrorism—a response which itself has become one of the key issues of our times. We have watched on in horror at the systematic destruction of Gaza, the loss of life on a large scale, and the rapidly compounding humanitarian crisis stemming from a lack of basic aid. We've witnessed the documented destruction of civilian infrastructure of schools, hospitals, water supplies and sanitation. We've seen death and suffering on a scale not seen for many years. The violence that is being used has taken on all the appearances of also being unmitigated and unrestricted. The civilian death toll from Gaza is almost beyond imagining—at least 80,000 are dead—and 160,000 have been injured, many of them with lifelong injuries. The psychological harm inflicted on nearly the entire population will last for lifetimes. The harm to the children in this regard is particularly devastating.

It is not just the killing and maiming which has caused the human catastrophe in Gaza; the forceful dislocation of a million people has created significant and almost unmanageable problems. People are living in poor shelters, with limited access to hygiene and drinking water; access to food and medicine is limited and malnourishment is widespread. Starvation is increasingly a part of life in Gaza. With the scale, scope and impact of this crisis, it's little wonder that many genocide scholars apply that term to what they are observing.

It's difficult to see how this war on Gaza has done anything to prevent a future attack on Israel, bring justice to the victims of 7 October or bring peace and freedom to the hostages and their families. Instead, this conflict has become one of the defining issues of this first part of the 21st century. It has stretched beyond the borders of Gaza, with conflict spreading to Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran. This widening instability has created a greater regional crisis, the geopolitical ramifications of which will resonate for some time. Compounding the horror is the sense that there is no easy pathway forward to a permanent and just peace for that tortured part of the world. A just peace would see Palestinians and Israelis living in peace and security in their own respective countries—a just peace which generations of people of goodwill on all sides have expended significant efforts and political capital towards achieving.

This just peace at times seems further away than ever before. For too long we have allowed the immediate complexities of agreements to stymie our efforts for a long-term peace. For too long we have listened to the loudest voices of obstruction and not heard the clarion call for peace. For too long we have allowed the intrusion of our own political biases to derail our commitment to a future of real peace. Forgoing an opportunity for lasting peace only guarantees the certainty of permanent war. Violence begets violence, and the cycle continues. Violence in response to violence will not bring peace, as we are witnessing now. We need to break the cycle and commit to a pathway to peace.

The lesson and message of today calls on all of us to use all of our powers and influence to achieve peace in Palestine and Israel. I believe the decision of our government to recognise the Palestinian state is a positive step towards achieving peace. This decision speaks to our commitment to play a positive and constructive role in the future of Palestine and Israel, towards the establishment of peace and prosperous relations between two states.

The Australian people have a clear view that the violence in Gaza needs to stop, and they have made this view clear. I call for the swift release of the Australia activists taken from the recent aid flotilla and remind the Israeli authorities of their obligations towards those in their custody.

The deeper connection between the attack on 7 October and the ongoing attack in Gaza is in their victims. Civilians are the ones who are suffering. Civilians, particularly children, are the ones paying the price for decisions they never made. Ultimately, on a day like this, we all need to remember a central fact—there are not Israeli lives and Palestinian lives; there are only human lives, and these lives will continue to be lost while peace remains distant. But the people of Palestine and Israel deserve peace. They deserve lives of safety and dignity. Let us take renewed purpose from this needless suffering and work towards a future of peace, freedom and dignity.

As the Prime Minister reminded us in his address to the United Nations General Assembly, let us remain true to those founding words in the UN charter from 80 years ago, which determined 'to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war', 'to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights', and 'to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom'. Let us work for these ends 'to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours'. Those words were right 80 years ago, and they remain right today.