A Palestinian ‘terrorist’ who hijacked two planes and labelled Hamas soldiers responsible for the October 7 attacks as ‘freedom fighters’ could come to .
Leila Khaled is listed as a keynote speaker at June’s Ecosocialism event in Perth which is hosted by the Socialist Alliance and Green Left media outlet.
However, Jewish-n community members have called for her to be barred from entering due to her complicated history as a prominent member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
The now elderly woman is still a member of the extremist Marxist group which is known for hijacking planes, assassinations and suicide bombings.
The PFLP is regarded as a terrorist organisation by the United States, the European Union and Canada while has subject the group to financial sanctions.
Leila Khaled (pictured) is listed as a keynote speaker at June’s Ecosocialism event in Perth hosted by the Socialist Alliance and Green Left media outlet
The n Jewish Association condemned Ms Khaled’s appearance at Ecosocialism in a tweet on Monday.
‘What a great illustration of the fusion of hard left politics, radical “Palestinian” activism [and] terrorism, in this case aircraft hijacking,’ it said.
The PFLP gained global infamy in the late 1960s and early 1970s due to string of airline hijackings and bombings.
Ms Khaled was involved in at least two of the groups hijackings.
In 1969, she helped hijack Trans World Airlines Flight 840 travelling from Rome, Italy, to Tel Aviv, Israel, as the group believed Israel’s ambassador to the United States was on board.
No one was injured in the attack but the hijackers blew-up the plane’s nose.
Ms Khaled was involved in a second hijacking one year later when she attempted to hijack El Al Flight 219 from Amsterdam, Netherlands, to New York City, United States.
She, alongside another co-hijacker, threatened to detonate grenades inside the plane if the pilot did not let them into the cockpit.
Gunshots were fired and the plane went into a nosedive before landing.
The Sydney Morning Herald claims the Albanese Government has indicated it will not allow Ms Khaled to enter .
In a statement to Daily Mail , a government spokesperson said it ‘is aware of this case’.
‘The Migration Act is clear. All people applying for visas, no matter where they’re from, are required to undergo security checks – as has been the case under all governments,’ they said.
‘The Government is unable to comment on individual cases.’
Organisers of Ecosocialism have stated if Ms Khaled is denied entry to , she will still be invited to speak at the conference through video chat.
The government spokesperson suggested Ms Khaled could face prosecution if she was found to be inciting terrorism in , even if she speaks from another country.
‘It is a criminal offence to advocate terrorism [under] Section 80.2 of the Criminal Code,’ they said.
‘The offence of advocating terrorism can apply even where the person is in a foreign country, provided that the result of the conduct occurs in . As such, it could apply even if an individual appeared online rather than in person in .
‘In addition, the Albanese Government’s Prohibited Symbols legislation, which came into effect last month, makes it a criminal offence under Commonwealth law to glorify or praising acts of terrorism.’
More to come.