Editorial: From crisis to crisis

Almost eerily, there are many parallels between the time when our publication was launched and the events surrounding its 50th anniversary today. Then, as now, Israel was finding its footing in the aftermath of defensive wars that were marked by catastrophic intelligence failures: the Yom Kippur War and the October 7 war, respectively.

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Maybe she won’t be right after all

Australia can no longer pretend we are immune to this storm of darkness that has swept across the world and now reached our shores too. And the Jews of Australia are crying out for moral strength and clarity from our country’s leaders…

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Australian government’s conduct gravely disappointing

The government’s own calculations no doubt inform its actions. However, the overall effect has been to degrade Australia’s relationship with our most important Middle Eastern partner, while making Australia’s Jewish community, suffering its worst ever wave of antisemitism, feel more isolated.

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AIJAC “deeply disappointed” with “moral relativism and factual confusion” in speech from Foreign Minister

The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) today expressed deep disappointment at the inappropriate moral relativism displayed by Foreign Minister Senator Penny Wong during her Hawke Lecture on December 9 at the University of South Australia, in which she placed Russia, China and Israel side by side when it comes to supposed violations of international law.

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Jewish community ‘not surprised’ by shocking synagogue attack: Joel Burnie on Sky News

Speaking with Sky News Danica Di Georgio, Australia Israel & Jewish Affairs Council executive manager Joel Burnie notes the “appalling” spike in antisemitism immediately following the October 7 attacks last year. A Melbourne synagogue has been left with significant damage after a fire ripped the building in a suspected arson attack in the early hours of Friday morning.

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Faith, Unity and the Spirit of Abraham

The conference coincided with the weekly Torah reading of Genesis 12, which concerns the journey and mission of Abraham: to be a blessing to humanity. This is an important reminder to all of us not to despair of our role to repair – and to play our part in mending – the world.

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