Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at a Labor party election night event, after local media projected the Labor Party’s victory, on the day of the Australian federal election, in Sydney, Australia, May 3, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hollie Adams

The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas is once again praising Western countries for recognizing a Palestinian state, most recently commending Australia for its decision to do so at the United Nations General Assembly next month.

“We welcome Australia’s decision to recognize the state of Palestine, and consider it an important step towards achieving justice for our people and securing their legitimate rights,” Hamas senior leader Sheikh Hassan Yousef said in a statement on Wednesday.

“This position reflects political courage and a commitment to the values of justice and the right of peoples to self-determination,” he said, urging the Australian government to turn this recognition into concrete action “by exerting diplomatic pressure to end the Israeli occupation.”

“We call on all countries, especially those that believe in freedom and human dignity, to follow Australia’s example and translate their positions into practical steps to support the Palestinian people and end their suffering under occupation,” the statement continued.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his government’s decision earlier this week, joining France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other nations in pledging to recognize a Palestinian state next month.

Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad previously praised Canadian, British, and French plans to recognize a Palestinian state as “the fruits of Oct. 7,” citing the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, as the reason for increasing Western support.

“The fruits of Oct. 7 are what caused the entire world to open its eyes to the Palestinian issue,” the terror leader said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

Israeli officials and opponents of such recognition argue that Hamad’s remarks demonstrate that these countries are, in effect, rewarding acts of terrorism.

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Albanese’s government dismissed such accusations, arguing that Hamas would in fact oppose the recognition of a Palestinian state, since the terrorist group would have no role in its future governance.

The spokesperson even condemned Hamas for attempting to “manipulate facts for their own propaganda” after the group hailed his decision as an “important step towards achieving justice.”

Albanese echoed those sentiments in a media interview with “Today,” saying, “Hamas is opposed to two states. This is the opposite of what Hamas wants. Hamas wants one state.”

US and Israeli officials criticized Australia’s latest decision, arguing that the recognition effectively “rewards” Palestinian terrorists.

Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel accused Albanese of being “detached from reality.”

In an interview with “Sid & Friends In The Morning,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday dismissed Western plans to recognize a Palestinian state next month, calling the move “”meaningless.”

“It’s symbolic, and they’re doing it primarily for one reason, and that is their internal politics, their domestic politics,” Rubio said.

“In the UK, in France, in many parts of Europe and Ireland, for a long time their domestic politics have turned anti-Israel or whatever it may be, and they’re getting a lot of domestic pressure to do something,” he continued.