ZFA to urge government to ban Islamist hate group
'Extremists like Hizb ut-Tahrir are actively working to destroy social cohesion, and are operating with complete impunity'
The Zionist Federation of Australia will write to the federal government urging it to ban Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir after a Nine Newspapers investigation revealed its members “infiltrated the mainstream pro-Palestinian movement” in Australia.
The report by Nick McKenzie, Marta Pascual Juanola and Anne Worthington found the group, which is banned in many countries, has been “using front groups to spread their radical ideology” and has held “multiple events” at the University of Sydney’s ostensibly pro-Palestinian encampment.
The encampment received its marching orders for the university on Friday.
ZFA president Jeremy Leibler said the Nine Newspapers investigation “must be a wake-up call”.
“Hizb ut-Tahrir is promoting terrorism, hatred and violence. We will be writing to the Australian Government, urging it to initiate the legal process for Hizb ut-Tahrir to be proscribed as a terrorist organisation,” he said.
Leibler noted that according to the investigation, Hizb ut-Tahrir – which is banned in Germany, and proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the United Kingdom – has led national boycotts of Jewish-owned businesses and incited violent protests in Caulfield that required a synagogue to be evacuated; they have infiltrated Australia’s leading university, are glorifying terrorism and distributing extremist material, and are covertly using front organisations to mainstream their extremism with a combined 33,000 followers.
“This explosive investigation has exposed that their leaders preach that ‘the sharia obligation is for people who have the capability to rise and wage jihad’ – they have even stood up a ‘secret wing’ that is actively lobbying Muslim soldiers to fight together with Hamas,” he said.
Leibler said the investigation has made it clear that extremists like Hizb ut-Tahrir are actively working to destroy social cohesion, and are operating with complete impunity.
“It is frankly reckless that our authorities have let it establish a sophisticated operation. Especially so given that it is banned in Germany and proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the United Kingdom,” he said.
“This investigation has exposed that Hizb ut-Tahrir has been covertly pushing unwitting Australians towards extremism, and radicalising its members in support of terror. Governments must take it seriously and act decisively.”
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