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Australia’s Decision to Cancel Hockey Tournament Shows Depth of Jew-Hatred in Country
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks during a press conference at the Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, June 17, 2024. Photo: Lukas Coch/Pool via REUTERS
On January 7, in a stunning move that reflects a troubling global trend, Ice Hockey Australia canceled its plans to host a key international tournament — allegedly to “protect”‘ the Israeli national team from pro-Palestinian activists.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the cancellation was “unfortunate,” but offered little more than a dismissive comment about the sport’s limited popularity in Australia, while insisting that the Australian government has taken sufficient action to protect its Jewish population.
This meaningless, almost dismissive, statement by the Prime Minister demonstrates just how out of touch he and his Australian Labor government are when it comes to dealing with the scourge of antisemitism currently plaguing Australia.
By contrast, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has been stronger, rightly calling antisemitism “a national disgrace.”
The tournament’s cancellation highlights the broader failure of many Western governments, including Australia, to confront the surge of antisemitism that followed Hamas’ October 7 terror war.
On October 9, 2023, just two days after the attack, the Sydney Opera House was lit up in blue and white to show solidarity with Israel. Yet it was the deeply distressed Jewish community that was warned to stay away for their own safety — as violent anti-Israel protestors brazenly showed up burning Israeli flags and shouting antisemitic slogans.
The anti-Israel mob was also empowered by the police to take over the downtown area.
This set a terrible precedent. Since then, the Australian Jewish community has been under severe stress — with little confidence in federal and state governments or law enforcement agencies to protect them, and with good reason.
A report released late last year showed that between October 2023 and September 2024, there was a staggering 316% increase in antisemitic incidents reported in Australia for the previous period.
These figures don’t even include the fire bombing of the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne last month, or numerous recent cases of property damage in Sydney, including one from just a couple of days ago in which the words, “F**K the Jews,” was scrawled in bold black letters across a white car.
Other notable acts of appeasement and capitulation to hate since the October 7 massacre have been numerous.
In March, 2024, a world-renowned Israeli trauma expert was axed from a medical conference to be held in Australia, after organizers received threats from pro-Hamas agitators. Like the Ice Hockey Federation, the conference organizers were quick to concede to the antisemitic demands of these agitators in the name of “security.”
Most recently, the World Bowls Tour, an association for lawn bowling, banned Israelis from participating in international events due to “much pressure.” Appropriately, that blatantly discriminatory ban was revoked a short time later after “significant additional security measures” had ostensibly been put in place — though an international outcry also likely played a part.
This is not about lawn bowling, ice hockey, or medical conferences. It’s about a systematic campaign to intimidate and harass Israelis and Jews from participating in any international and public events.
This is a deliberate campaign to ostracise Jews from society and delegitimise Israel as a nation state — and it started long before the October 7 attacks.
For many years, the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement (BDS), along with other international organizations, such as elements of the United Nations, have laid the groundwork for today’s antisemitic rhetoric. They have campaigned to exclude Israel from international events, accusing it of being a rogue state with no right to exist, and falsely labelling it “apartheid” or “colonialist,” or insisting that it is guilty of “ethnic cleansing.”
The October 7 attacks incentivized the haters to carry on this campaign by utilizing the undoubted suffering of Gaza — even though the war was one that Hamas initiated. Their slanderous claims of Israel committing “genocide” have often been amplified by the dedicated Israel-haters in the UN and the international media.
These intimidation tactics have succeeded in impacting the personal safety of Jews in Australia and across the world.
Earlier this year, Australian pro-Hamas activist Laura Allam was arrested for kidnapping and torturing a man, reportedly because he worked at a Jewish-owned business. A synagogue was firebombed with worshippers in the building.
As Israel’s ambassador to Australia ,Amir Maimon, correctly said, “By yielding to extremists and intimidation, you are proving that such tactics succeed.”
Governments need to recognize that appeasement only emboldens extremists, and sporting and other boycotts directed against Jews and Israelis are not free speech or political protest, but efforts to impose blatant ethnic discrimination as part of a global antisemitic movement.
Only a firm stand against these actions can ensure Jewish communities in Australia and around the world feel safe, supported, and protected.
Justin Amler is a policy analyst at the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC).
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Brooklyn Nets Select Israeli Basketball Players Ben Saraf, Danny Wolf in NBA Draft
The opening tip between the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards, at Barclays Center, in Brooklyn, New York, Dec. 13, 2020. Photo: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect
In a landmark night for Israeli basketball, Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf were selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft by the Brooklyn Nets, marking the first time two Israeli players have been drafted in the same year.
Saraf, a 19-year-old guard known for his explosive athleticism and creative playmaking, was taken with the 26th pick. A standout with Maccabi Rishon LeZion and a rising star on Israel’s youth national teams, Saraf gained international attention with his electrifying scoring and commanding court presence.
With the 27th pick, the Nets selected 7-foot center Danny Wolf out of the University of Michigan. Wolf, who holds dual US-Israeli citizenship and represented Israel at the U-20 level, brings a versatile skill set, including sharp passing, perimeter shooting, and a strong feel for the game. After his name was called, Wolf grew emotional in an on-air interview, crediting his family for helping him reach the moment.
“I have the two greatest brothers in the world; I have an unbelievable sister who I love,” Wolf said. “They all helped me get to where I am today, and they’re going to help me get to where I am going to go in this league.”
The historic double-pick adds to the growing wave of Israeli presence on the NBA stage, led by Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, who just completed a breakout 2024–25 season. After being traded to Portland last summer, Avdija thrived as a starter, averaging 16.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.8 assists. In March alone, he posted 23.4 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game, including two triple-doubles.
“I don’t think I’ve played like this before … I knew I had it in me. But I’m not really thinking about it. I’m just playing. I’m just free,” Avdija told reporters in March
With Saraf and Wolf joining Avdija, Israel’s basketball pipeline has reached unprecedented visibility. Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the moment “a national celebration for sports and youth,” and Israeli sports commentators widely hailed the night as “historic.”
Both Saraf and Wolf are expected to suit up for the Nets’ Summer League team in July. As the two rookies begin their NBA journey, they join a growing generation of Israeli athletes proving that their game belongs on basketball’s biggest stage.
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Iran Denies Any Meeting With US Next Week, Foreign Minister Says
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attends a press conference following a meeting with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, April 18, 2025. Photo: Tatyana Makeyeva/Pool via REUTERS
Iran currently has no plan to meet with the United States, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Thursday in an interview on state TV, contradicting US President Donald Trump’s statement that Washington planned to have talks with Iran next week.
The Iranian foreign minister said Tehran was assessing whether talks with the US were in its interest, following five previous rounds of negotiations that were cut short by Israel and the US attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities.
The US and Israel said the strikes were meant to curb Iran’s ability to create nuclear weapons, while Iran says its nuclear program is solely geared toward civilian use.
Araqchi said the damages to nuclear sites “were not little” and that relevant authorities were figuring out the new realities of Iran’s nuclear program, which he said would inform Iran’s future diplomatic stance.
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Ireland Becomes First European Nation to Advance Ban on Trade With Israeli Settlements
A pro-Hamas demonstration in Ireland led by nationalist party Sinn Fein. Photo: Reuters/Clodagh Kilcoyne
Ireland has become the first European nation to push forward legislation banning trade with Israeli communities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — an effort officials say is meant “to address the horrifying situation” in the Gaza Strip.
On Wednesday, Irish Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Simon Harris announced that the legislation has already been approved by the government and will now move to the parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade for pre-legislative scrutiny.
“Ireland is speaking up and speaking out against the genocidal activity in Gaza,” Harris said during a press conference.
The Irish diplomat also told reporters he hopes the “real benefit” of the legislation will be to encourage other countries to follow suit, “because it is important that every country uses every lever at its disposal.”
Today Ireland becomes the first country in Europe to bring forward legislation to ban trade with the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Ireland is speaking up and speaking out against the genocidal activity in Gaza.
Every country must pull every lever at its disposal. pic.twitter.com/Z4RTjqntEY— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) June 24, 2025
Joining a growing number of EU member states aiming to curb Israel’s defensive campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, Ireland’s decision comes after a 2024 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared Israel’s presence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal.
The ICJ ruled that third countries must avoid trade or investment that supports “the illegal situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
Once implemented, the law will criminalize the importation of goods from Israeli settlements into Ireland, empowering customs officials to inspect, seize, and confiscate any such shipments.
“The situation in Palestine remains a matter of deep public concern,” Harris said. “I have made it consistently clear that this government will use all levers at its disposal to address the horrifying situation on the ground and to contribute to long-term efforts to achieve a sustainable peace on the basis of the two-state solution.”
“Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are illegal and threaten the viability of the two-state solution,” the Irish diplomat continued. “This is the longstanding position of the European Union and our international partners. Furthermore, this is the clear position under international law.”
Harris also urged the EU to comply with the ICJ’s ruling by taking a more decisive and “adequate response” regarding imports from Israeli settlements.
“This is an issue that I will continue to press at EU level, and I reiterated my call for concrete proposals from the European Commission at the Foreign Affairs Council this week,” he said.
Last week, Ireland and eight other EU member states — Finland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden — called on the European Commission to draft proposals for how EU countries can halt trade and imports with Israeli settlements, in line with obligations set out by the ICJ.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the latest move by European countries, calling it “shameful” and a misguided attempt to undermine Israel while it faces “existential” threats from Iran and its proxies, including Hamas.
“It is regrettable that even when Israel is fighting an existential threat which is in Europe’s vital interest — there are those who can’t resist their anti-Israeli obsession,” the top Israeli diplomat said in a post on X.
It is regrettable that even when Israel fighting an existential threat which is in Europe vital interest – there are those who can’t resist their anti-Israeli obsession.
Shameful! https://t.co/lxm9qm8sM1— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) June 19, 2025
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