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Australia’s Jewish Community Faces an Election — and an Unprecedented Threat
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 May 3, 2025, Australians will head to the polls in one of the most pivotal elections in recent memory — especially for Australian Jews.
This vote comes after a harrowing period of unprecedented hostility toward the Jewish community in Australia, triggered by the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre in Israel. That day shattered not only lives in Israel but also the illusion of safety that Jews in the Diaspora — including in Australia — once held dear.
Almost overnight, antisemitism, often masquerading as anti-Zionism, became rampant. Empathy for Israel and the Jewish people, reeling from the greatest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust, was alarmingly in short supply.
Even more disturbingly, this hatred erupted in Western democracies — nations that should have stood in solidarity with Israel, a fellow democracy under attack by genocidal terrorists.
Nations like Australia.
Long considered a peaceful haven for Jews, Australia proved to be no exception. Far away from the conflicts of the Middle East and even further away from the baggage of thousands of years of ingrained antisemitism in Europe, our country was about as distant and far removed from these ancient hatreds as could be.
But no more.
On October 9, 2023 — as Israelis were still identifying their dead — the Sydney Opera House was lit in blue and white in solidarity. But outside, a different scene played out. Demonstrators, claiming to support Palestinians, flooded the area, chanting “F— the Jews” and “F— Israel.”
Instead of dispersing this hate-filled rally, authorities warned Jews to stay away “for their own safety.” Only one person was arrested that night: a man displaying the Israeli flag.
That moment set the tone for what would become the most dangerous period in the history of Australian Jewry.
Rather than cracking down on the surge in antisemitism, the tepid response from authorities allowed it to flourish.
And flourish it did.
Hatred was no longer whispered in the darkened corners at the fringe of society, but shouted, broadcast, and celebrated in full public view.
Islamic clerics openly praised the Hamas massacre. Jewish institutions were targeted with graffiti, and Jewish schools were vandalized — including one in Melbourne where “Jewdie” was spray-painted on the walls. Worshipers at a synagogue were even forced to leave early after demonstrators descended on their suburb with the threat of violence in the air.
But it got worse.
On December 6, 2024, the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne was firebombed in the early hours of the morning, with some worshippers narrowly escaping with their lives.
A December 2024 Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) report recorded a staggering 316% increase in antisemitic attacks since October 7, 2023 — a level not seen since the Holocaust. Those figures didn’t even include the firebombing attack.
Then, in January, Ice Hockey Australia canceled its hosting of a key international tournament — not to protect Jewish athletes, but, allegedly, to shield the Israeli team from anti-Israel protestors.
The current Labor government is not the cause of this antisemitism. But its failure to confront it robustly has contributed to its escalation. Since its election in May 2022, it has shattered the warm bipartisan relationship that existed between the two countries. It has voted for biased one-sided resolutions against Israel at the United Nations, while constantly criticizing Israel’s efforts to defend itself.
While it has in recent months appeared to finally take the threat of antisemitism more seriously — including setting up a special federal task force to crack down on antisemitism, as well as appointing a special a Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism — it does beg the question: What took so long? The damage has already been done.
Jews feel less secure now in Australia than they ever had, and the government bears a responsibility for that.
Just days ago, neo-Nazi flyers — adorned with Liberal Party logos — appeared in the mailboxes of Jewish homes in Caulfield, Melbourne, filled with antisemitic tropes about Jews and money. Members of the same hate group were seen outside voting booths dressed as Hasidic Jews, distributing flyers that read: “Giving the Jews everything they want.” Posters of both Jewish and non-Jewish candidates were defaced with red spray-painted Stars of David.
The image of Australia as a tolerant society for Jews has been severely strained, perhaps even shattered. Whether the ineffective Labor government remains in power, as it’s projected to do, or the more pro-Israel Liberal Party takes over, the road ahead for Australia’s Jews remains uncertain and dangerously perilous.
The antisemitic genie has been let out of the bottle — and putting it back in will not be easy.
Justin Amler is a policy analyst at the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC).
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Iran Says It Has Replaced Air Defenses Damaged in Israel War
The S-300 missile system is seen during the National Army Day parade ceremony in Tehran, Iran, April 17, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iran has replaced air defenses damaged during last month’s conflict with Israel, Iran’s Defah Press news agency reported on Sunday quoting Mahmoud Mousavi, the regular army’s deputy for operations.
During the conflict in June, Israel’s air force dominated Iran’s airspace and dealt a heavy blow to the country’s air defenses while Iranian armed forces launched successive barrages of missiles and drones on Israeli territory.
“Some of our air defenses were damaged, this is not something we can hide, but our colleagues have used domestic resources and replaced them with pre-arranged systems that were stored in suitable locations in order to keep the airspace secure,” Mousavi said.
Prior to the war, Iran had its own domestically-made long-range air defense system Bavar-373 in addition to the Russian-made S-300 system. The report by Defah Press did not mention any import of foreign-made air defense systems to Iran in past weeks.
Following limited Israeli strikes against Iranian missile factories last October, Iran later displayed Russian-made air defenses in a military exercise to show it recovered from the attack.
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Calm Reported in Syria’s Sweida, Damascus Says Truce Holding
Members of Internal Security Forces stand guard at an Internal Security Forces’ checkpoint working to prevent Bedouin fighters from advancing towards Sweida, following renewed fighting between Bedouin fighters and Druze gunmen, despite an announced truce, in Walgha, Sweida province, Syria, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Residents reported calm in Syria’s Sweida on Sunday after the Islamist-led government announced that Bedouin fighters had withdrawn from the predominantly Druze city and a US envoy signaled that a deal to end days of fighting was being implemented.
With hundreds reported killed, the Sweida bloodshed is a major test for interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, prompting Israel to launch airstrikes against government forces last week as it declared support for the Druze. Fighting continued on Saturday despite a ceasefire call.
Interior Minister Anas Khattab said on Sunday that internal security forces had managed to calm the situation and enforce the ceasefire, “paving the way for a prisoner exchange and the gradual return of stability throughout the governorate.”
Reuters images showed interior ministry forces near the city, blocking the road in front of members of tribes congregated there. The Interior Ministry said late on Saturday that Bedouin fighters had left the city.
US envoy Tom Barrack said the sides had “navigated to a pause and cessation of hostilities”. “The next foundation stone on a path to inclusion, and lasting de-escalation, is a complete exchange of hostages and detainees, the logistics of which are in process,” he wrote on X.
Kenan Azzam, a dentist, said there was an uneasy calm but the city’s residents were struggling with a lack of water and electricity. “The hospitals are a disaster and out of service, and there are still so many dead and wounded,” he said by phone.
Another resident, Raed Khazaal, said aid was urgently needed. “Houses are destroyed … The smell of corpses is spread throughout the national hospital,” he said in a voice message to Reuters from Sweida.
The Syrian state news agency said an aid convoy sent to the city by the government was refused entry while aid organized by the Syrian Red Crescent was let in. A source familiar with the situation said local factions in Sweida had turned back the government convoy.
Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Sunday that Israel sent urgent medical aid to the Druze in Sweida and the step was coordinated with Washington and Syria. Spokespeople for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Foreign Ministry and the military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Druze are a small but influential minority in Syria, Israel and Lebanon who follow a religion that is an offshoot of a branch of Shi’ite Islam. Some hardline Sunnis deem their beliefs heretical.
The fighting began a week ago with clashes between Bedouin and Druze fighters. Damascus sent troops to quell the fighting, but they were drawn into the violence and accused of widespread violations against the Druze.
Residents of the predominantly Druze city said friends and neighbours were shot at close range in their homes or in the streets by Syrian troops, identified by their fatigues and insignia.
Sharaa on Thursday promised to protect the rights of Druze and to hold to account those who committed violations against “our Druze people.”
He has blamed the violence on “outlaw groups.”
While Sharaa has won US backing since meeting President Donald Trump in May, the violence has underscored the challenge he faces stitching back together a country shattered by 14 years of conflict, and added to pressures on its mosaic of sectarian and ethnic groups.
COASTAL VIOLENCE
After Israel bombed Syrian government forces in Sweida and hit the defense ministry in Damascus last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had established a policy demanding the demilitarization of territory near the border, stretching from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights to the Druze Mountain, east of Sweida.
He also said Israel would protect the Druze.
The United States however said it did not support the Israeli strikes. On Friday, an Israeli official said Israel agreed to allow Syrian forces limited access to the Sweida area for two days.
A Syrian security source told Reuters that internal security forces had taken up positions near Sweida, establishing checkpoints in western and eastern parts of the province where retreating tribal fighters had gathered.
On Sunday, Sharaa received the report of an inquiry into violence in Syria’s coastal region in March, where Reuters reported in June that Syrian forces killed 1,500 members of the Alawite minority following attacks on security forces.
The presidency said it would review the inquiry’s conclusions and ensure steps to “bring about justice” and prevent the recurrence of “such violations.” It called on the inquiry to hold a news conference on its findings – if appropriate – as soon as possible.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights said on July 18 it had documented the deaths of at least 321 people in Sweida province since July 13. The preliminary toll included civilians, women, children, Bedouin fighters, members of local groups and members of the security forces, it said, and the dead included people killed in field executions by both sides.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, another monitoring group, has reported a death toll of at least 940 people.
Reuters could not independently verify the tolls.
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Pope Leo Calls for End to ‘Barbarity of War’ After Strike on Gaza Church
Pope Leo XIV leads the Angelus prayer in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Pope Leo called for an end to the “barbarity of war” on Sunday as he spoke of his profound pain over an Israeli strike on the sole Catholic church in Gaza.
Three people died and several were injured, including the parish priest, in the strike on the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza City on Thursday. Photos show its roof has been hit close to the main cross, scorching the stone facade, and shattering windows.
Speaking after his Angelus prayer, Leo read out the names of those killed in the incident.
“I appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and respect the obligation to protect civilians as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, of indiscriminate use of force and forced displacement of the population,” he said.
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