WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Defence minister announced Australia will halt arms exports to Israel.
OUR VERDICT
False. Richard Marles has made no such statement, and the government says Australia does not export arms to Israel.
AAP FACTCHECK - The defence minister has not said Australia will stop exporting weapons to Israel as the country "incinerates babies with white phosphorus", despite claims on social media.
The statement, supposedly made by Richard Marles, is fake and the Australian government says it doesn't export arms to Israel.
"JUST IN: Australia's Defense Minister says arms exports to Israel will be halted: 'We will not authorize weapons to a regime that incinerates babies with white phosphorus'", a Facebook post reads.
The claim has also been widely shared on X.
No such announcement or comments, however, have been made by Mr Marles or any other government figure.
A search through statements made by the minister on his website, using the keywords "Israel" and "arms", produces no result for an announcement about halting exports, and no news articles appear online that include the supposed quote attributed to him.
A spokesperson for Mr Marles told AAP FactCheck the quotes and comments are not legitimate, while the Australian government says it doesn't export arms to Israel and hasn't done so for several years.
In the past the government has faced accusations that this is incorrect, particularly from The Greens.
The government operates a permit system for exports of military-specific goods and dual-use goods, such as computer components, which could be used in weapons.
The intention of the system is to stop weapons from falling into the wrong hands.
Professor Rain Liivoja, an expert in international law at the University of Queensland, described the process as "quite complex" but said any Australian company wishing to export arms must get the permission of the defence minister through a process managed by Defence Export Control, a regulator within the Department of Defence.
Experts and human rights groups have criticised the system for lacking transparency, particularly as the government isn't required to publicly reveal the types of goods exported or their final destination.
Photos emerged early in 2025 of Israeli defence officials posing alongside an Australian-designed weapon system being trialled.
Greens Senator David Shoebridge told the ABC it was evidence of the government's lies about exporting arms.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the weapon was not exported to Israel from Australia, with a defence industry source telling the ABC the Australian-made components were sent to the US for assembly, before being sent to Israel without an Australian export approval.
Australian companies do provide parts for the F-35 fighter jet as part of a global supply chain.
Twenty countries use the US-made jets, including Australia, the UK, Canada and Israel, according to a website by lead manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
With regards to the white phosphorus part of the claim, Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of using the incendiary weapon in Gaza, a claim denied by the Israel Defense Forces.
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