Israeli president says antisemitism a global emergency, lays wreath at Bondi
Updated ,first published
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has accused pro-Palestinian protesters of trying to undermine Israel’s existence, as he used his arrival in Australia to express disappointment that more was not done to combat antisemitism ahead of the worst terror attack in Australian history.
Herzog visited Bondi Beach after arriving in Sydney on Monday morning, the first stop on a contentious four-day visit that has already sparked major protests in capital cities across the country and prompted police to launch a major security operation.
The Israeli president said that before the Bondi terror attack, he warned that the rise of antisemitism around the world, including in Australia, following the October 7 attacks and subsequent war in Gaza could be deadly, and called for tougher action to combat anti-Semitic prejudice.
As Herzog prepared to address members of Sydney’s Jewish community at an event on Monday night, pro-Palestinian protesters, including some calling for Herzog’s arrest and many chanting “free Palestine”, gathered for major planned protests in central Sydney and Melbourne on Monday evening.
The Palestine Action Group lost its bid on Monday afternoon for the NSW government to designate Herzog as a “major event” and give police extra powers.
Judge Robertson Wright dismissed the protest group’s case, saying its conclusions were not easily or easily reached.
Speaking at Sydney Town Hall, former Australian of the Year Grace Tame called Herzog a “war criminal”.
Using a phrase that would be banned in Queensland under new laws, he said: “From Gadigal to Gaza, make the intifada global.”
Herzog laid a wreath at the Bondi Mansion and brought stones from Jerusalem to meet the survivors of the attack and relatives of those who died. He was standing just feet away from the spot where two gunmen shot and killed 15 people during a Hanukkah celebration on December 14.
“One thing has become clear: The hatred that starts with the Jews never ends with the Jews,” Herzog said, surrounded by heavy security, including police helicopters hovering in the sky and snipers on guard in nearby buildings.
“The rise of antisemitism worldwide is therefore a global emergency, and we must all take action to fight it.”
When asked if he had a message for protesters who were outraged by the deaths of more than 70,000 people in Gaza and who planned to attend demonstrations during his visit, he said: “These demonstrations, in many cases, what you hear and what you see, undermine and delegitimize our rights, the rights of my nation.” [to] its mere existence.”
Herzog, whose attitude was largely ceremonial, said: “Israel did not want the war of October 7. There was a terrible attack on our nation and people were slaughtered, murdered, raped, burned and kidnapped.”
Several survivors of the Bondi attack and relatives of the victims accused the Albanian government of failing to adequately respond to warnings that antisemitism was rising before the December 14 massacre.
“These frustrations were shared by many of us, including me,” Herzog said.
“I have seen this huge increase all over the world and I have seen it in many countries, including all English-speaking countries, including Canada, Great Britain, the United States and Australia, among others, and I warned well in advance.
“That’s why I clearly understand this frustration and hope that the steps taken recently will bring change.”
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told parliament that Herzog was “an honored and welcome guest” in Australia and said “his presence in Australia today is very important for our nation and especially for our nation’s Jewish community”.
Responding to a question from independent MP Sophie Scamps about whether Australia would impose sanctions on Israeli politicians over their moves to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, Marles said Herzog’s visit was “entirely consistent with this government’s position in supporting a two-state solution”.
Echoing comments he made in an interview with this magazine before leaving Israel, Herzog said: “It is important for me to say that I came here in good faith… I am here to express solidarity, friendship and love, and I also believe that this is an opportunity to improve our relations with Israel and Australia because together we are two democracies that share values and we are confronting the roots of evil that are coming from all over the world and we must do this together.”
Paying tribute to first responders who rushed to help the injured, he said: “Suddenly, here in Bondi, surfboards became trenches and stretchers as ordinary ordinary people rushed into danger and saved innocent lives.”
Bondi shooting survivor Yvonne, who attended Monday’s event, said she believed Herzog’s visit was an important show of solidarity with Australia’s Jewish community.
“This shows us that we are not alone,” said the Sydney mother, who asked that her surname not be used. She was talking to a friend while waiting to buy donuts with her young son when gunshots were heard in Bondi on December 14. He dislocated his hip while running from gunmen and still walks with crutches.
The event was attended by NSW Premier Chris Minns, as well as leaders of some of the country’s largest Jewish organisations. Zionist Federation of Australia co-chairman Jeremy Leibler and Executive Council of Australian Jews co-chair Alex Ryvchin.
Ryvchin said he hoped Herzog’s visit “will lift the morale of a suffering community and lead to a much-needed recalibration of bilateral relations between two historic allies.”
“When we are targeted because we are Jews, it means a lot to have the solidarity of the Jewish world represented here by the president of the Jewish state,” he said.
Police approached a protester shouting “shame” as he left the Herzog Bondi Pavilion.
The 25-year-old Bondi resident said he wasn’t planning to protest but was overcome with emotion.
“This wasn’t a hateful thing, it was an empathetic human response when I saw an agitator in my suburb,” he said.
Josh Lees Palestine Action Group Sydney He responded to Herzog’s arrival by saying: “The streets of Sydney belong to the people, not to Chris Minns or the president of Israel. We will not be silenced or intimidated. Large numbers of people will be protesting in Sydney to show that we are against genocide.”
Progressive Jewish Council of AustraliaIsrael published an open letter opposing Israel’s stance in the war in Gaza. Sydney Morning Herald And Age It was signed by more than 1,000 Australian Jews who oppose Herzog’s visit on Monday.
“Welcoming an alleged war criminal in the wake of the Bondi massacre is a betrayal to Jewish communities, multicultural Australia and all those who defend Palestinian human rights and international law,” the letter said.
A United Nations-backed investigation Last year, he accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and found Herzog “incited the commission of genocide” by saying at a 2023 press conference that “an entire Palestinian nation” bore responsibility for the Oct. 7 attacks.
Herzog called this accusation “another lie and distortion of the facts” and said his statements at the same press conference, in which he said he supported international law and opposed the killing of innocent people, were ignored.
Herzog will also visit Canberra and Melbourne during his visit, which will also include meetings with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley.
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