Why Australia sanctioned Israeli Ministers

With Q+A wrapping up after an 18-year stint on our screens, PK and David Speers share their reflections and honour the crew behind the program.And Australia has joined with the UK, New Zealand, Canada and Norway to issue Magnitsky style sanctions against two Israeli Ministers, in a move which Foreign Minister Penny Wong shows the "level of concern" Australia has about what is occurring.

The joint statement claims the Ministers have "incited extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights", but the Albanese Government is already facing criticism from the US and Israel — as well as closer to home.

And ex-Greens Senator Dorinda Cox has accused her former party of a "toxic culture" and racism, in an explosive resignation letter. It comes just a week after she defected from the Greens to Labor.

Patricia Karvelas and David Speers break it all down on Politics Now.

Got a burning question?

Got a burning political query? Send a short voice recording to PK and Fran for Question Time at [email protected]

Politics Now

The ABC's politics podcast, Politics Now, dives into the biggest political stories in Australia and around the world, giving you a balanced look inside the strategies and decisions behind the headlines. Whenever major news breaks, we'll be in your feed with coverage you can trust.

From Monday to Wednesday, Patricia Karvelas will chat to a rotating cast of the ABC's biggest political journalists about the latest news.

On Thursdays, 'The Party Room' with Patricia Karvelas and Fran Kelly will discuss the week's developments in depth with another journalist, and answer your questions.

On Saturdays, David Speers gets into the details of a major trend or issue with the help of an expert on 'Insiders On Background'.

• No. of episodes: 128
• Latest episode: 2025-06-18
• News

Where can you listen?