TONY ABBOTT ON AUSTRALIA'S NEW ROLE IN IRAQ:
"As things stand, doing nothing means leaving millions of people exposed to death, forced conversion and ethnic cleansing."
"Many Australians, understandably, will shrink from reaching out to this conflict on the other side of the world but this conflict is reaching out to us
ON A FUTURE MILITARY ROLE:
"Should such a request come from the Obama administration and be supported by the government of Iraq, it would be considered against these criteria: is there a clear and achievable overall objective? Is there a clear and proportionate role for Australian forces? Have all the risks been properly assessed? And is there an overall humanitarian objective in accordance with Australia's national interests?"
ON ISLAMIC STATE:
"I refuse to call this hideous movement "Islamic State" because it's not a state; it is a death cult."
"They have come to hate us no less than they hate their victims in Iraq and Syria. They don't hate us for what we do but for who we are and for how we live. They hate us because we let people live and worship in whatever way they choose and I thank God that we do."
SOURCE: Prime Minister's statement to Parliament on Iraq, September 1
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