By Dominic Giannini and Tess Ikonomou in Canberra

The Muslim community has issued a plea to politicians and leaders to avoid stoking social tensions by attacking a Labor senator for voting to support Palestinian statehood. 

West Australian Fatima Payman defied her party and crossed the floor to support a Greens Senate motion on recognising Palestine as a state.

She drew instant condemnation from the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, who accused Senator Payman and Greens senators of promoting a one-state solution and the abolition of Israel – a position neither expressed.

The Australian Muslim Advocacy Network has urged restraint on rhetoric against Senator Payman, saying there’s a risk of promoting Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian sentiments.

Conflating supporting Palestinian statehood – which the government and opposition have committed to doing under different caveats – with supporting Hamas or terrorism demeaned all Palestinians and Muslims, the network said.

Senator Payman said she voted in line with her convictions after becoming more outspoken about Palestine and condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza as the death toll numbers in the tens of thousands and civilians starve.

“Although each step I took across the Senate floor felt like a mile, I know I did not walk these steps by myself,” she said after the vote.

“I walked with the people of Palestine, for the 40,000 killed (in Gaza), for the hungry and scared boys and girls who now walk alone, without their parents, and for the brave men and women who have to walk alone without their children.”

She said she hasn’t resigned from Labor despite crossing the floor, which MPs expected to vote in line with the party.

Supporting a Palestinian state was in line with Labor’s policy, she argued.

“We cannot believe in a two-state solution and only recognise one,” she said.

There was no intention to expel her from the party despite the defiance, with social cohesion in Australia under “enormous stress” since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said.

“This is not a time to be going around expelling people because they have a particular view on this issue,” he said.

“Senator Payman has made completely clear … she continues to espouse Labor values.”

It’s the first time a Labor Party member has crossed the floor since 2005 and the first time one has done so in government since the mid-80s.

The Greens urged more Labor members to support their motion on Palestinian statehood, saying it was a pathway to peace.

Progress on a two-state solution had been hampered by Israel’s illegal settlements in occupied Palestinian territories, the party’s foreign affairs spokesman Jordon Steele-John said.

“The Greens support the right of Palestinians and Israelis to live with peace, equality and security,” he said.

The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network and the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils welcomed Senator Payman’s support.

Senator Payman’s action resonated deeply with Australians who upheld values of fairness, justice and international law, the network said.

The recognition of Palestinian statehood would set a significant step forward with it being a matter of human rights, dignity and justice that should traverse political lines, council president Rateb Jneid said.

But the coalition and some Jewish community leaders have expressed outrage at any push to recognise a Palestinian state while Hamas remained a threat to Israel, saying it rewarded the actions of the designated terrorist group.

Senator Payman has also joined with the Greens and crossbenchers to call on the government to take a stronger stance against Israel’s actions in Gaza, with the death toll surpassing 37,000, according to the Hamas-run local health ministry.

A United Nations inquiry found both Israel and Hamas have been responsible for war crimes after the designated terrorist organisation killed 1200 Israelis and took some 250 hostages during an attack on October 7.