In 1975, Indonesia invaded East Timor. During the early skirmishes of the invasion, five Australian journalists were shot and killed by Indonesian military forces. The Gough Whitlam-led Australian government apparently denied knowledge of the killings, and instead maintained support for Indonesia's annexation of East Timor. After Whitlam was removed from leadership, new Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser remained committed to the same policy. In 1978, the Fraser government recognised Indonesia's "de facto" sovereignty in East Timor and later the Hawke government, by signing the 1989 Timor Gap Treaty, recognised that same sovereignty as "de jure".