Leaders of the Australian Jewish community criticized the decision by the Australian government to cancel the visa of MK Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionist Party), one day before he was scheduled to attend an event for the Jewish community in the country.
Robert Gregory, the CEO of the Australian Jewish Association (AJA) which arranged Rothman’s visit to Australia, said, “The purpose of Mr Rothman’s visit was to show solidarity with Australia’s Jewish community, which is facing a wave of antisemitism. AJA had arranged for him to meet with victims, visit targeted Jewish institutions, and address numerous Jewish schools and synagogues. I have just returned from Israel and can attest that there is growing alarm there about the situation for Jews in Australia under the Albanese Government. The visit was not in any way connected to current events in the Middle East.”
He added, “This is a viciously antisemitic move from a government that is obsessed with targeting the Jewish community and Israel.”
“All the paperwork was filled out correctly and on time and the visa was approved. The timing of the cancellation at the last minute was spiteful and intended to cause maximum harm to the Australian Jewish community. Mr Rothman received his cancellation on the day he was to head to the airport for his flight.”
Gregory further pointed out, “This government has a track record of cancelling the visas of Jewish and Israeli visitors, including Ayelet Shaked and Hillel Fuld. The message from the Albanese Government to Jews is clear and we urge all Jews to seriously consider whether it is safe for them to visit Australia under this government.”
He concluded, “AJA is hearing from increasing numbers of Australian Jews who feel unwelcome under this government and are planning to leave. It seems the government is happy to replace them by importing thousands of Gazans. Israel is fully justified in taking strong measures in response to this and we have briefed contacts in the Trump Administration who are also concerned about events in Australia."
Jeremy Leibler, president of the Zionist Federation of Australia, also expressed opposition to the Australian government’s move, even though he described some of Rothman’s views as “highly offensive”, as he put it."
“Many of Mr. Rothman's views are highly offensive and do not reflect the values of the Australian Jewish community or the mainstream Israeli public. It is one thing to disagree strongly with an elected representative of a democracy and ally, it is quite another to deny them entry on that basis. Australia ought not set such a precedent," said Leibler, as quoted in Haaretz.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar decided later on Monday to revoke the visas of Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority.
In addition, the Foreign Minister instructed Israel’s embassy in Canberra to carefully review all official Australian visa requests for entry into Israel.