Hillel Fuld urges Australian Jews to plan exit

Israeli tech entrepreneur and Zionist activist Hillel Fuld has warned that the Chanukah Massacre at Bondi Beach was “just the appetiser” and urged Australian Jews to develop an exit strategy.

Fuld, who was controversially banned from entering Australia in 2024, told The Australian Jewish News he was “not in the least bit” surprised by the December 14 attack.

“This is what we expected. I’m surprised it took this long,” he said.

“I’m pretty sure that this was not the last of it or the worst of it. I believe this was an appetiser, as horrible as that is to say, that will only inspire more people to do this.”

Two days before the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, Fuld posted on social media warning that a major event was imminent.

“On October 5, 2023 I wrote on my social media that if you’re paying attention to what’s going on between America and Russia, America and China, Iran and Israel, internal politics in Israel, internal politics in America, and you don’t think something big is about to happen, you’re not paying attention,” he said.

“I wrote in that post, Israel will be the centre of it. That was two days before October 7.”

Fuld said his prediction was not prophecy but observation.

“I knew that because my eyes are open. I’ve read history books, and so it was very clear to me that something big was about to happen because things were boiling over. The same is true right now.”

In August this year he warned that a very large scale attack on Jews was likely.

Asked what message he had for Australian Jews, Fuld was blunt.

“As a collective, as a people, we need to understand that our life in the diaspora is coming to an end, and you should be making an exit strategy,” he said.

“You should be making a plan, whether that’s a plan to leave in six months, a year, five years. Don’t just stick your head in the sand.”

Fuld drew direct parallels between the current climate and pre-Holocaust Europe.

“If you go down the list of things that happened before the Holocaust – – windows being shattered, synagogues being vandalised, Jews not being allowed to go to academic institutions, Jews being harassed, assaulted, murdered, burned alive in the streets – – all that happened. There’s literally not one thing that happened before the Holocaust that has not happened in the last two years.”

He acknowledged that leaving was not simple but said Jews needed to recognise the urgency of the situation.

“I understand that it’s not so simple to just pick up a life and move to Israel. No one’s saying it’s simple, but if you had a gun to your head, it wouldn’t matter how simple it was. You’d get on a plane and you’d figure it out.”

For those who wished to stay and fight, Fuld offered conditional support.

“Meanwhile, while you’re there, do anything in your power with all the resources at your disposal to battle it, whether it’s politically, whether it’s diplomatically, whether it’s taking to the streets, whatever you can do to stand up to this insanity. But just know you’re not going to beat it.”

Fuld said things are not going to get better for Australian Jews, in fact it’s going to get worse fast.

“So we need to open our eyes at the very least. And unfortunately, I really do believe that long term, there is only one solution, and that is El Al dot com.”

Asked whether he would visit Australia once his ban expires in approximately two years, Fuld said he had “absolutely no desire to set foot in that country.”