Whether Fatima Payman remains a Labor senator is in the hands of her caucus colleagues after she defied her party’s position and voted to brand recognition of a Palestinian state an urgent issue.

The West Australian senator voted against her party in the Senate on Tuesday, supporting a Greens motion that sought to have the upper house declare recognising Palestinian statehood an urgent matter.

Labor members are expected to follow the party’s position but there is no mandated sanction for crossing the floor. It’s the first time a party member has crossed the floor since 2005.

“I said I will follow my conscience,” she said when asked about her decision to cross the floor.

“What our rank and file members have been asking us is for us to do more as a party … that takes pride in our fight towards human rights and being champions of justice.”

A decision to expel the senator is one for caucus while the senator’s Labor membership will be left in the hands of the national executive.

But senior Liberal senator Simon Birmingham said Senator Payman’s actions constituted a direct challenge to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s leadership.

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry also condemned the vote to support Palestinian statehood. 

But the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils welcomed Senator Payman’s support.

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.

The Greens also supported Senator Payman, with Mehreen Farqui – who moved the motion – saying the Labor member had stood by her convictions and showed “real moral courage”.

Senator Payman did not resign after crossing the floor, saying she believed it was within Labor’s policy platform and she upheld the party’s values.

It’s Labor Party policy to recognise a Palestinian state but with no timeline and some caveats attached. 

“I was not elected as a token representative of diversity, I was elected to serve the people of Western Australia and uphold the values instilled in me by my late father,” Senator Payman said.

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

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has slightly shifted Labor’s position, saying recognition could now no longer wait until the end of a negotiated peace process. 

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said recognition could only come after Palestinian officials and the Palestinian Authority agreed Israel had the right to exist as a democratic and Jewish state.

Hamas could play no role in the state – which meant all remaining hostages needed to be released – and appropriate security guarantees between parties within recognised borders had to be put in place, he said.

Senator Payman has 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.

The scale of killing in Gaza, use of starvation and failure to supply essentials such as food, water, shelter and medicine were found to be war crimes conducted by Israel.

The federal government has called on Israel to abide by international humanitarian law and said it was “gravely concerned” at the inquiry’s finding.  

Palestinian supporters want outright condemnation and accountability.

This post was originally published on Michael West.