Featured
AIJAC both concerned and hopeful in wake of President Trump’s pledges at meeting with Netanyahu
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) today said that it was “hopeful” that the cycle of war surrounding Gaza could be broken by US President Trump’s offer for the US to take a lead role in rebuilding Gaza… However, AIJAC also expressed strong concern over any hint that the US President is suggesting forcibly evacuating Gazans from the area.
Read MoreCeasefire needed on Australian streets
As the news broke of a massive terror attack threat on the Sydney Jewish community, with a synagogue the likely target, I began to feel real fear in a way I have never felt before.
Read MoreGaza will need real aid, not Hamas in disguise
A key issue is that UNRWA does not consider either Hamas or PIJ to be terrorist organisations, as they’re not on the UN’s terrorism list. It thus refuses to vet its staff for terrorist links, and sees no problem in openly cooperating with Hamas.
Read MoreAIJAC welcomes bipartisan support for Federal Hate Crimes bill
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) welcomes the likely passing of the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2024 and the bipartisan support for it, but believes existing legislation should be better enforced.
Read MoreMonsters and Heroes: An Australian perspective
It’s impossible not to be moved by a myriad of emotions as we watched young women and an old man go from the dark abyss of evil, hatred and despair into the euphoria of lightness, good and the loving embrace of their family and friends.
Read MoreTo succeed, the Gaza ceasefire must lead to hope and stability
The text of the ceasefire agreement is a masterclass of internal contradictions, vagueness, and word choices that enable both sides to claim they did not compromise on their key demands
Read MoreAntisemitic bomb plot “a massive escalation”: Colin Rubenstein on Sky News
AIJAC executive director Dr Colin Rubenstein spoke with Sky News’ Peter Stefanovic about the apparent antisemitic bomb plot uncovered by NSW Police, as well as the continuing antisemitic graffiti attacks.
Read MoreA peaceful Gaza is possible
It goes without saying that imposing conditions in Gaza is complicated. Hamas’s ideology is deeply entrenched; Hamas was in charge of school curriculum for 16 years, in a territory where the median age is 18. Erasing this influence will demand a sustained effort to reshape Gaza’s political, social and economic systems – something for which the international community has, historically, shown zero appetite.
Read MoreA ceasefire is not enough for a strategic victory in the Middle East
Israelis are overjoyed to see some hostages released after 15 months of captivity under the Hamas deal. However, they also overwhelmingly recognise that the second phase of the agreement, which is supposed to create arrangements for a permanent end to the war and whose details are still to be negotiated, must not preserve the status quo.
Read MoreAntisemitism database “first step of many more that need to be taken”: Dr Colin Rubenstein on ABC TV
Speaking to the ABC, AIJAC’s Executive Director Dr Colin Rubenstein responds to the National Cabinet’s decision to establish a national database to track antisemitism.
Read MoreAIJAC calls for urgent national action on worsening antisemitism crisis
The attack on a childcare centre in Maroubra yesterday again underscores the reality that violent antisemitism is not a passing malady, but has become a chronic illness in Australia.
Read MorePrice of the Israel-Hamas hostage exchange ‘excruciatingly high’ as hatred of Jews explodes across the Western world
To see our first three hostages, Emily, Romi and Doron, emerge from that darkness into the light illustrates what this war is truly about. We cannot even begin to imagine the suffering they have endured.
Read More