Following this incident, the Israeli leadership accused Australia of failing to take effective action against anti-Semitism.
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Israeli leaders have strongly condemned the shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, which left 11 people dead on Sunday.
The Israeli leadership has accused Australia of failing to take effective action against anti-Semitism in the wake of the incident.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Canberra of long-standing anti-Semitism. He recalled a letter he wrote to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in August after Australia announced its recognition of a Palestinian state, saying, “Your policies are adding fuel to the fire of anti-Semitism.” Speaking in a televised address in southern Israel, Netanyahu said, “When leaders remain silent, anti-Semitism spreads like a cancer.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar spoke by phone with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong and urged tough action against the growing anti-Semitism in Australia. On social media, he claimed that there had been an increase in violent incitement against Israel and the Jewish community in Australia since October 7 and expressed serious concern about the slogans heard at some of the demonstrations.
President Isaac Herzog has condemned the attack on Jews who gathered on Bondi Beach to light the first candle of Hanukkah as “extremely brutal”. At an event in Jerusalem, he called on Australia to stand firm against the “huge wave of anti-Semitism” plaguing its society.
The shooting took place at the “Hanukkah by the Sea” event, held on the first night of Hanukkah on Sydney’s famous Bondi Beach. Australian Prime Minister Albanese condemned the incident as “an act of evil, anti-Semitism and terrorism”, and said “an attack on a Jewish Australian is an attack on every Australian”.
Meanwhile, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gavir accused the Australian government of legitimizing anti-Semitic terrorism, while opposition leader Yair Lapid expressed deep concern about the increasing number of deadly attacks targeting Jewish communities in cities around the world and called for immediate and decisive international action.
