Political fallout from synagogue arson
The new Special Operation Avalite, detailed by AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw, will focus explicitly on investigating serious offences targeting Jewish Australians.
The firebombing of the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne has sent shockwaves through Australian politics.
On Monday, the government announced that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) have established a specialised taskforce targeting threats against the Jewish community.
The new Special Operation Avalite, detailed by AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw, will focus explicitly on investigating serious offences targeting Jewish Australians.
The operation will investigate incidents including urging violence against Jewish groups, advocating terrorism or genocide, and using communication services to threaten or harass.
ASIO director-general Mike Burgess has warned that politically motivated violence is now a principal security concern, with provocative and inflammatory language being normalised.
He believes there continues to be more than a 50 per cent chance of a terror attack being attempted or planned in the next 12 months.
Under fire for the government’s response to antisemitism since October 7, 2023, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese highlighted recent actions aimed at fighting the scourge, including banning Nazi salutes, appointing Australia’s first special envoy to combat antisemitism, and legislation to criminalise hate speech.
He has also announced an additional $32.5 million in security funding for Jewish sites to be distributed by the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ).
The extra money will supplement an earlier $25 million program protecting synagogues, schools and other Jewish community locations.
ECAJ president Daniel Aghion cautiously welcomed the support while emphasising the need for more comprehensive action.
“We are grateful for the government’s support, but this is still about protecting our institutions from attack,” Aghion said.
He stressed that the funding is reactive rather than preventative, saying, “It is not getting ahead of the problem, and it is not dealing with the causes of antisemitism and preventing the attacks and risk in the first place.”
The ECAJ wrote to the Prime Minister on Sunday, saying Jewish Australians are questioning their safety and future in the country.
It called for urgent national measures, including mandatory antisemitism education, enhanced legal protections and the convening of National Cabinet to further address the national antisemitism crisis.
Albanese, who was in Perth at the time of the arson attack, visited the Adass Israel synagogue on Tuesday.
Standing next to the ruins, he unequivocally condemned the attack, declaring, “This arson attack is an act of terrorism, it was fuelled by antisemitism and it was stoked by hatred.”
The Prime Minister committed his government to supporting the synagogue’s restoration, pledging to “provide whatever support is necessary financially to make sure that those who perpetrated this evil crime do not receive any benefit”.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has already pledged $100,000 towards rebuilding the shule.
Upon leaving the synagogue, Albanese encountered some hostility from parts of the crowd but Adass community members quickly silenced the hecklers with calls of “Sha” (“Quiet” in Yiddish).
Aghion described the Prime Minister’s visit as deeply impactful.
“The Prime Minister was quite touched. In fact, I’d say marked,” he said.
Aghion believed that the cat-calling was not representative of the Adass community, noting that they treated him as a guest and that he was “genuinely interested in what they had to say”.
“I think the Prime Minister’s intent is genuine. Obviously he will be judged by his actions, not his words, but I think he understands what the Jewish community is facing,” he said.
The Prime Minister personally inspected the damage, climbing into the fire-damaged ruins to fully understand the extent of the destruction. Aghion noted that Albanese was willing to get “his suit quite dirty” to show solidarity with the community.
Meanwhile, in a rare show of bipartisan solidarity, former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg and former Labor senator Nova Peris jointly condemned the attack at a press conference on Saturday.
Frydenberg said government inaction in tackling antisemitism had directly led to the firebombing of the synagogue.
“Our leaders still don’t get it – they’re more than recklessly indifferent. They’ve created a very dangerous climate, and that has obviously culminated in the firebombing just a couple of days ago,” he said.
Peris was equally forceful, stating, “In this country, we have a constitution which says every Australian has the right to religious freedom. How dare anyone attack a place of worship in this country?”
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus acknowledged the severity of the current situation, noting this represents the highest level of antisemitism he has witnessed in his lifetime.
“And our government is determined to do whatever we can to bring this to an end, and I’d be calling on [Opposition Leader] Peter Dutton to stand with the government, not to be making these criticisms or empty calls for the government to do more – or worse,” he said.
“He claimed that somehow the government had caused this event to occur, which is an absurd thing for any political leader to suggest,” Dreyfus said on talkback radio.
Josh Frydenberg and Nova Peris embrace Jewish community member Charlene Miller after holding a press conference at Princes Park, Caulfield South, following the firebombing of the Adass Israel shule.
Photo: Peter Haskin
comments