In the Media

It began with an attempted arson at the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation, one of the city’s oldest synagogues, where 20 Jews were enjoying Shabbat. An Iranian-born Australian tried to enter to set it ablaze. Fortunately, a quick-thinking 13-year-old refused to open the door. The attacker doused the door in accelerant and lit it instead, limiting the damage to the exterior. We can only imagine the horror that would have ensued, had he managed to get inside.

Minutes later, an Israeli-owned restaurant in the city was attacked.

About 20 protesters broke away from a demonstration consisting of far-left activists and pro-Palestinian groups, ironically demonstrating against the police monitoring their movements, and stormed Miznon, a well-known Israeli-themed restaurant in central Melbourne. They overturned tables, terrorized diners, and shouted the antisemitic slogan “Death to the IDF” as they tried to wreck the premises.

Apologists claim that the phrase is just a protest against an institution. But that’s false.

Bob Vylan, the artist who popularized it at the recent Glastonbury Festival, was filmed explicitly calling for the death of every IDF soldier. As readers well know, most Israelis serve in the IDF. It is effectively a call for genocide.

Not long after that, a business that manufactures parts that go into the F-35, which Israel (among many other countries) flies, was attacked, with cars parked outside vandalized and torched.

Three violent incidents in just a few hours, all in Melbourne, Australia – a country once known for its social cohesion and tolerance.

A serious problem in Australia 

I wish I could say our community was shocked. That this was an aberration that would not be tolerated in our peaceful, fair city.

However, I’d be lying. In fact, Australia has a serious problem.

Over the past 21 months, its image as a tolerant, diverse, welcoming country has been shattered. So much so that the Israeli government, despite fighting an existential war against genocidal forces, took the time to call on the Australian government to protect its Jewish minority.

It wasn’t always this way.

Australia and Israel share a long history. The Australian Light Horse Brigade fought in the Battle of Beersheba in 1917, helping to defeat the Ottoman Empire and open the road to Jerusalem. In 1947, Australian minister Herbert “Doc” Evatt chaired the UN committee that proposed the Partition Plan, and Australia was the first country to vote in favor.

For decades, Australia was on the right side of history – seeking Middle East peace, but doing so from a position that genuinely understood Israel’s vital security needs, and sympathized with its position as the sole liberal democracy in the region. Australia was a rare beacon of light in a stormy ocean of discontent. To see that light grow dim has deeply shaken our community.

What allows antisemitism to explode? 

Some ask: How could this happen here? It’s the same question being raised in many countries where antisemitism has exploded.

Many in our community blame our country’s current leadership. Its weak response to antisemitism after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, mega-attack on Israel has given hatred room to grow, letting poisonous ideology seep into the mainstream.

At the same time, Australian leaders have become sharply critical of Israel, both at home and on the international stage, overturning bipartisan positions that have endured for decades. That erosion has left many in the Jewish community feeling abandoned and isolated.

After these latest attacks, the usual statements were issued, almost like a Pavlovian reaction. And once again, new anti-hate committees and special investigation units were announced.

While welcome, none of them will matter without real will and a determined purpose to act and restore Australia’s good name.

We need leaders who recognize the difference between a democracy that shares Australia’s democratic values and those who want to destroy it – as well as leaders who understand that supporters of the latter cannot be given the run of our streets without violence being the outcome.

We need leaders who understand that the chants “Death to the IDF” or “Globalize the Intifada” or “From the River to the Sea” are not meaningless political slogans but genocidal calls that, if acted upon, will see the deaths of millions.

We need them to understand that when rampant demonstrators attack our institutions and our community with word and deed, chanting “all Zionists are terrorists,” we take it very personally because they are not calling for dialogue – they are calling for death.

The flames of hatred are burning here. Australia needs to decide what kind of country it wants to be: one where families can share a Shabbat meal in peace, or one where Jews wait anxiously for the next attack.

Justin Amler is a policy analyst at the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC).