New Israeli ambassador Hillel Newman

Israel’s new ambassador to Australia Hillel Newman says his appointment presents an opportunity to reset bilateral relations that have been tested since October 7, 2023.

Newman, who presented his credentials this week, told The AJN that Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar gave him a clear mandate to rebuild the relationship.

“He called me up and said, ‘Look, you’ve got a challenging position. We trust you to make a difference,'” Newman said.

“This is an opportunity when we have an exchange of new ambassadors on both sides to reset the relations and put the negative parts in history and build a positive new future.”

Newman said his priorities included bringing back strategic dialogue between the two countries and practical cooperation in a range of fields. He emphasised that while differences of opinion on issues like the Palestinian question were legitimate, they should not overshadow bilateral relations.

“We can have differences of opinion, but what we must not have is that differences of opinion start flowing over to a disruption of our bilateral relations or our shared values,” he said.

“Our relations are beyond that, greater than that, and there was always strong, I would say, kinship, between Israel and Australia due to shared values.”

Newman, who was born in South Africa before his family made aliyah when he was 11, previously served as consul general in Los Angeles, ambassador to Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, and deputy consul general in Boston. He has also worked as a policy adviser to five Israeli foreign ministers.

He said the Bondi Beach terror attack in December had deeply affected Israelis.

“There was across Israel a strong feeling of solidarity, as if it was Israelis that were killed and injured,” Newman said.

“The solidarity was amazing. The Bondi attack touched every Israeli. There is such a kinship between Israel and the diaspora Jewry.”

Newman said he would visit not only Chabad of Bondi but also other synagogues that have been attacked, and would be “a voice for the Jewish community towards the authorities of Australia”.

Newman said he would reach out to various Australian communities including Christian and Indigenous populations, and was willing to engage with Muslim communities “as long as they’re prepared to recognise us and work with us in peace”.

He also expresses willingness to work with the Iranian diaspora which has been vocal recently in protesting the regime.

“We are allies. We have the same goal. We just want to see a prosperous Iran with good relations with the entire international community and Israel.”