ABC Political reporter Pablo Vinales has more from Parliament house in Canberra.
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00:00Well, there had been a growing sense of optimism amongst the international community that this
00:06ceasefire deal could be struck, including Australia.
00:09Of course, Australia was one of the nations in the UN that was pushing for the ceasefire.
00:14And we heard today from the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese.
00:18He said it is a significant breakthrough after a 15-month conflict, which he labelled was
00:24a devastating loss of civilian life.
00:26He also paid tribute to international mediators who helped strike this interim deal, but noted
00:32this is not the end.
00:34This is what he had to say a little bit earlier.
00:37This agreement is a constructive step towards peace and stability in the region.
00:42Today must mark the beginning of a new chapter for the Israeli and Palestinian people.
00:49We hope it will allow the Palestinian people the opportunity to rebuild, reform their governance,
00:54which is most necessary, and pursue self-determination.
00:59Australia remains unequivocal in our condemnation of Hamas's atrocities on the 7th of October
01:07and of the ideology that drives this terrorist organisation.
01:12There must be no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza.
01:17Any future Palestinian state must not be in a position to threaten Israel's security.
01:24Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also said he hopes it brings down the temperature here
01:28domestically.
01:29And we heard earlier from the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, who had this to say.
01:34The government, with its actions over the course of last year, has given hope to a terrorist
01:40organisation.
01:41And we should not be giving hope to a listed terrorist organisation that somehow they can
01:46achieve a political win out of what was a barbaric terrorist attack.
01:52So everybody wants peace in the Middle East, of course we do.
01:55And we want to make sure that the remainder of the hostages are released, if they're still
02:00alive.
02:01And let's wait to see what happens in relation to those commitments and whether they're honoured
02:08before we start to talk about next steps.
02:11And Pablo, as well as his comments about the Middle East this morning, Prime Minister Albanese
02:15also announced a shake-up of his Cabinet following the departure of a Labor frontbencher.
02:21Who has he appointed?
02:23This minor reshuffle has been prompted by the retirement of NDIS Minister Bill Shorten.
02:28Of course, a significant departure from Australian politics.
02:32A former Labor leader, he went to the election in 2016 and 2019.
02:37He is finishing up in his role nine days earlier than initially planned.
02:42And as a result, his role of government services and the NDIS needs to be filled.
02:48There is a Prime Minister outlining who will be taking on those positions.
02:53Amanda Rishworth to become, in addition to her current responsibilities, Minister for
02:59the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
03:03Senator Katie Gallagher to become the Minister for Government Services.
03:07Dr Anne Arleigh to become the Minister assisting the Minister for the National Disability Insurance
03:15Scheme.
03:16All of these positions will be in addition to the ministerial responsibilities already
03:21held by Ministers Rishworth, Gallagher and Arleigh.
03:27And it does bear noting that the Aged Care and Sports Minister, Annika Wells, will also
03:31be promoted to Cabinet.
03:34They will be sworn in by the Governor-General on Monday.
03:37So the final touches ahead of an election year.