New Zealand parliamentarian and Green Party Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick was ordered to leave Parliament on Tuesday (12 August) after refusing to apologise for remarks made during a heated debate on the government’s position regarding the recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The centre-right government announced that it was still considering whether to recognize a Palestinian state.
This is a move which several key allies, including Australia, Canada, the UK, and France, have announced recently and said they would make their support official at the United Nations conference in September.
Swarbrick called New Zealand a “laggard” and an “outlier” in the international community by sharply criticizing the government’s delay. She urged members of the ruling coalition to support the Green Party bill introduced in March. That would impose sanctions on Israel for alleged war crimes — legislation backed by all opposition parties.
“If we find six of 68 Government Members of Parliament (MPs) with a spine, we can stand on the right side of history," Swarbrick told the House of Representatives.
Spokesperson of the House Gerry Brownlee considered the comment “completely unacceptable”. He demanded that Swarbrick withdraw it and apologise. When she refused, she was ordered to leave parliament.
Brownlee later affirmed that Swarbrick could return on 13 August but warned that if she still refused to apologise she would be again removed from parliament.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters restated that the government would make its decision on Palestinian recognition in September.
He added later that officials would “gather information and consult with international partners” before presenting recommendations to the Cabinet.
“We’ll be weighing this decision carefully rather than rushing to judgment,” Peters told Parliament.
Three out of six parliamentary parties of 54th Parliament, The Green Party, Labour, and Te Pāti Māori, all support immediate recognition of Palestine.
Member of the Labour Party Peeni Henare criticised the government’s indecision, saying New Zealand “was being left behind” and should stand by its values.
The debate comes in the middle of growing international drive for Palestinian statehood, with diplomatic developments expected to intensify in the lead-up to next month’s United Nations conference.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has grown from a 1996 border security forum into a major Eurasian bloc, now representing nearly half the w...
Iran said it expects the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to condemn the move by the European troika of France, Germany and the UK which has ca...
Direct road transport between Türkiye and Syria has restarted after more than a decade. The move is expected to boost trade and support Syria’s pos...
The U.N. agency responsible for providing humanitarian aid and support for displaced people has announced cuts in its 2026 budget due to financial con...
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday that Moscow and Tehran are in regular contact on a broad range of international issues, including deve...
New Zealand’s intelligence agency has warned the country is facing its toughest security challenges in decades, with foreign interference and espionage from states including China, Russia, and Iran.
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said that Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu had “lost the plot.” He made the comment on Wednesday (August 13) as Wellington considers whether to recognise Palestinian state.
New Zealand researchers are using drones and satellites to protect eucalyptus forests from costly pest damage.
New Zealand has suspended NZ$18.2 million (U.S. $10.8 million) in budget funding to the Cook Islands amid growing tensions over the island nation’s deepening ties with China and concerns over a lack of transparency.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the Oaxaca region of Mexico on Saturday.
The UK is gearing up for Exercise Pegasus 2025, its largest pandemic readiness test since COVID-19. Running from September to November, this full-scale simulation will challenge the country's response to a fast-moving respiratory outbreak.
A Polish Air Force pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training flight ahead of the 2025 Radom International Air Show.
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has grown from a 1996 border security forum into a major Eurasian bloc, now representing nearly half the world’s population. Its 2025 summit in Tianjin highlighted both its expanding reach and its evolving role on the global stage.
Iran said it expects the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to condemn the move by the European troika of France, Germany and the UK which has called for the return of UN sanctions against Tehran’s civilian nuclear program.
The U.N. agency responsible for providing humanitarian aid and support for displaced people has announced cuts in its 2026 budget due to financial constraints.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday that Moscow and Tehran are in regular contact on a broad range of international issues, including developments related to Iran’s nuclear programme.
The EU has accused Russia of jamming the GPS signal on an aircraft carrying the European commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment