Bondi Beach terrorist attack: Massacre was inevitable, Jewish group says
The Federal Government’s record on tackling anti-Semitism is under scrutiny after a Jewish group says the Bondi massacre was inevitable.
Police and intelligence officials continue to investigate the massacre at a Hanukkah celebration on Australia’s most famous beach.
Naveed Akram, 24, and his father Sajid Akram, 50, opened fire on the participants, killing 15 people and injuring many others.
While Naveed remained under police protection and possibly facing criminal charges, Sajid was killed on the spot.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday rejected claims his government was slow to tackle antisemitism.
He listed actions taken, including criminalizing hate speech advocating violence, funding Jewish community groups, and promoting inclusivity for Jewish students and staff on college campuses.
“We have taken strong action. We will continue to work with the community,” he told reporters in Sydney.
“Anti-Semitism is a scourge. It has been around for a long time. We must do everything we can to eliminate it.”
Following the bombing of a synagogue in Melbourne in 2024, the US-based Simon Wiesenthal Center issued a travel warning for Jews coming to Australia.
Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the center’s associate dean, said he wanted to lift the warning note, but the attacks on Bondi made that difficult.
“You have to say (Sunday’s) attack was inevitable,” Dr Cooper told AAP.
The influential Rabbi said he spoke to US Ambassador Kevin Rudd about anti-Semitic language in Australia but his concerns were ignored.
Dr Cooper said he was particularly concerned by the language used by some pro-Palestinian protesters comparing the actions of the Netanyahu Government to those of the Nazis.
“If Israel is actually a Nazi state and its supporters are Nazis, what do you do with the Nazis? You kill them,” he said.
“The core concerns and fears of an entire community have gone unheeded at best, and at worst… the signal those who hate Israel and those who hate Jews are getting is that you will not be held accountable.”
Dr Cooper said the Government needed to play a stronger leadership role in directing police and spy agencies to stamp out anti-Semitism.
“We want to attract the strong and professional attention of the relevant police and intelligence groups to take action against the cells that we all know exist,” he said.
