World Jewish Congress (WJC) President Ronald S. Lauder on Tuesday denounced the recent antisemitic incidents in Melbourne, Australia, calling on the Australian government to take concrete action.
“Last week’s arson attack against the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation and the invasion of an Israeli-owned restaurant in Melbourne are malicious and cowardly acts perpetrated against the Jewish community and all who value civil society. Since October 7th, no corner of the democratic world remains safe from the creeping normalization of antisemitism, often violent in its manifestations,” said Lauder.
“We fully agree with Daniel Aghion, president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, a WJC affiliate, who said, ‘This is not just an attack upon Jews or the Jewish community. It is an attack upon our way of life,’” he added.
“While Australian leaders have denounced the recent antisemitism, with Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke rightly categorizing the synagogue firebombing as an ‘attack on Australian values,” concrete government action is required to fully safeguard Australia’s Jews,” said Lauder.
“The World Jewish Congress urgently calls on the Australian government, and all Australians, to stand together with the Jewish community against acts of hatred and violence, to restore fairness and decency to public discourse, and to consign antisemitism to the past,” he concluded.
A 34-year-old Sydney resident has been arrested and charged in connection with last Friday’s synagogue arson. In a separate incident on Friday, a group of 20 protesters chanting “Death to the IDF” stormed and vandalized Miznon, a popular Israeli restaurant in Melbourne’s central business district, throwing food and chairs.
Police arrested and later released a 28-year-old man, with an investigation ongoing to identify other perpetrators.
Israeli leaders condemned the antisemitic attacks on Saturday night.
President Isaac Herzog said, "I condemn outright the vile arson attack targeting Jews in Melbourne’s historic and oldest synagogue on the Sabbath, and on an Israeli restaurant where people had come to enjoy a meal together. It is intolerable that in 2025, we are still faced with the chilling image of an attempt to burn Jews alive as they pray, and attacks on Jewish businesses."
“This is not the first such attack in Australia in recent months. But it must be the last. Australian authorities must take all steps necessary to protect their Jewish citizens. Antisemitism is a stain on any society, and must be confronted with urgency and resolve," he added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated, "I strongly condemn the antisemitic attacks that took place last night in Melbourne, including the attempted arson of a synagogue and a violent attack on an Israeli restaurant by pro-Palestinian rioters."
"These despicable antisemitic attacks, accompanied by calls of 'death to the IDF' and attempts to harm a place of worship, are serious hate crimes that must be eradicated at their root.”
"The State of Israel will continue to stand by the Jewish community in Australia, and we demand that the Australian government take all necessary steps to hold the perpetrators accountable and prevent such attacks in the future."
The Australian state of Victoria announced it would be forming an anti-hate task force in response to a recent surge in antisemitic incidents.
Australia has seen a sharp uptick in antisemitic attacks in recent months, targeting synagogues, Jewish buildings, and vehicles across the country.
In early December, the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne was firebombed, in an incident that is being treated as an act of terrorism.
Days later, a car was set on fire, and two properties were vandalized with anti-Israel graffiti in the Sydney suburb of Woollahra, which has a substantial Jewish population.
In another incident, the words "F— the Jews" were spray-painted on a car in Sydney.
In early January, the Southern Sydney Synagogue in Allawah, a suburb of the city, was vandalized with antisemitic graffiti.
A day later, the Newtown synagogue, located in Sydney’s inner west, was vandalized with red swastikas that were spray-painted across the building’s front wall.
In another incident, a home in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, previously owned by Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, was vandalized.
In February, a video surfaced of two Australian nurses, Ahmad Rashad Nadir and Sarah Abu Lebdeh, stating they would refuse to treat Israelis and would send them “to hell”.
As a result of the video, the two have been banned from working with or providing services to participants of the country’s National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) for two years.