OFFICIAL

Dear Applicant,

Thank you for your email dated 21 October 2023 seeking access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

This email sets out some information about how your request will be processed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (the department).

Scope of request:

You have sought access to:

"On the 19th October 2023, it was reported by news.com.au that Foreign Minister Penny Wong said "Our current assessment is that Israel is not responsible for the explosion in a hospital in Gaza."...
INFORMATION I AM SEEKING:
1. I am seeking all documents, including but not limited to investigation reports, other reports, meeting minutes, correspondence, records of conversation & file notes held by the Department of Foreign Affairs that were used by the Foreign Minister in making the assessment 2. I also require all the draft versions of all these documents."

If it emerges that the scope of your request is unclear or is too large for processing, the department will contact you to discuss re-scoping the request.

Timeframe for receiving our decision:

We received your request on 21 October 2023, and the 30-day statutory period for processing your request commenced from the day after that date. A decision is currently due to you by 20 November 2023. The period of 30 days may be extended in certain circumstances. 

Given the recent events unfolding in Israel, the department’s Middle East Branch, who, if documents exist in relation to your request, are most likely to hold documents, are extremely busy supporting the crisis response.

As such, the department seeks your agreement to an extension of 30 calendars days to process your request (under section 15AA of the FOI Act). We will continue to work to finalise your matter as soon as possible.
We would be grateful if you are minded to agree, that you please confirm your agreement by COB 25 October 2023.

If we do not hear from you, we may apply to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner for an extension to the statutory timeframe.

Charges:

Please note that the Department may issue charges for processing FOI requests.  If applicable, we will advise you of any relevant charges when we are in a position to estimate the resources required to process your request.

Disclosure log:

Please note that, with some exceptions (such as personal information), documents released under the FOI Act may later be published on the department’s disclosure log.

Exclusion of officials’ names and contact details:

It is the Department’s policy to withhold the mobile numbers of all government officials, and the names, gender pronouns, and contact details of government officials not in the Senior Executive Service (SES) or equivalent.  If you require the mobile numbers of all government officials, or the names and contact details of non-SES officials, please let us know at [DFAT request email] so the decision-maker may consider; otherwise we will take it that you agree to that information being excluded from the scope of your request.

Personal Information:

If we need to consult with other people or organisations regarding your FOI request, we may need to disclose your personal information (e.g. your name).  When we consult it may be apparent that you have made a request, even if we do not disclose your identity.  Please let us know if you have any concerns in this regard.  You can access on the department’s website a copy of the privacy policy.

Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact us by return e-mail at [DFAT request email]

Kind regards

DFAT FOI Team
_______________________________
Freedom of Information Section
Public Interest Law Branch | Regulatory and Legal Policy Division
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

dfat.gov.au | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn

© Kim Hill, Among Women (2011)
We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia, and their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We pay our respects to all First Nations peoples, their cultures and to their Elders, past, present and emerging.

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OFFICIAL

Dear Foifoi Mcgee

Please find attached correspondence in relation to your FOI request.

Kind regards

DFAT FOI Team

_______________________________
Freedom of Information Section

Public Interest Law Branch | Regulatory and Legal Policy Division

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

[1]dfat.gov.au | [2]Twitter | [3]Facebook | [4]Instagram  | [5]LinkedIn

© Kim Hill, Among Women (2011)

[6]We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia, and their continuing connection to land, waters and community.
We pay our respects to all First Nations peoples, their cultures and to
their Elders, past, present and emerging.

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OFFICIAL

Dear Foifoi Mcgee

Please find attached correspondence relating to your FOI request. 

Kind regards

DFAT FOI Team

_______________________________
Freedom of Information Section

Public Interest Law Branch | Regulatory and Legal Policy Division

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

[1]dfat.gov.au | [2]Twitter | [3]Facebook | [4]Instagram  | [5]LinkedIn

© Kim Hill, Among Women (2011)

[6]We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia, and their continuing connection to land, waters and community.
We pay our respects to all First Nations peoples, their cultures and to
their Elders, past, present and emerging.

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OFFICIAL

FOI Request: LEX 12797

Dear FoiFoi Mcgee

Thank you for your email dated 1 September 2025 seeking an internal
review of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s (the department)
access refusal decision in LEX 9322 under the Freedom of Information Act
1982 (FOI Act).  

We seek your assistance to clarify your request.

Request for your assistance

You have sought an internal review of an access refusal decision notified
to you on 30 November 2023. You are 612 days out of time to request an
internal review of this decision.

You have two options:

 1. You can make a request for the department to allow you further time to
request an internal review (section 54B(1)(a) of the FOI Act).

Please note that if you proceed with option 1 – we would request that you
provide reasons in support of your request for why the department should
allow further time in the circumstances that 612 days has passed since
your right to review expired. If the department decides to grant you with
an extension of time, you would then need to subsequently make an
application for internal review.

 2. You can make a new FOI request – for example:

For the period 16 to 19 October 2023 – Documents provided to the Foreign
Minister Penny Wong that contain a finding or conclusion that Israel was
not responsible for the explosion on 17 October 2023 at the Al-Ahli Arab
Hospital in Gaza.

Context

On 19 October 2023 in Senate Estimates, the former Senator Simon
Birmingham asked the Foreign Minister:

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator
Wong. In response to a question from Senator Waters yesterday in relation
to the explosion at al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza, which has resulted in
further tragic loss of innocent lives, you correctly at the time noted:

There are obviously conflicting reports about what has occurred.

Overnight, President Biden has stated that, based on US information, it
appears to be as a result of an errant rocket fired by a terrorist group
in Gaza. A spokesperson for the United States National Security Council
further clarified:

… our current assessment, based on analysis of overhead imagery,
intercepts, and open source information, is that Israel is not responsible
for the explosion at the hospital in Gaza …

Minister, what is Australia's assessment or understanding of
responsibility for the tragic explosion at al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza?

The Foreign Minister in providing a response stated:

I think it is probably most appropriate, again, to refer to the US
National Security Council's words, which Senator Birmingham referenced.
The statement that was made was:

While we continue to collect information, our current assessment … is that
Israel is not responsible for the explosion at the hospital in Gaza
yesterday.

Please note that if you do not reply to this email, the default position
is option 1.

We would be grateful for your response at your earliest convenience, but
by no later than COB Friday 5 September 2025.

Kind regards  

Jonathan | DFAT FOI Team

_____________________________________________________
Assistant Director | Freedom of Information Section
Public Interest Law Branch | Regulatory and Legal Policy Division

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

[1]dfat.gov.au | [2]X | [3]Facebook | [4]Instagram  | [5]LinkedIn

© Brooke Rigney-Lively (2024)

We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia,
and their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We pay our
respects to all First Nations peoples, their cultures and to their Elders,
past, present and emerging.

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OFFICIAL
Dear Foifoi Mcgee

We will proceed with the new request.

We note the structure of the RTK website, and that given the way the RTK website works, it may be beneficial to make a new request with a new RTK email address.

Kind regards

Jonathan

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