Israel’s Ambassador to Australia, Amir Maimon, expressed deep sorrow over the terror attack targeting a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, saying he had long been warning about the dangers of rising antisemitism.
“In my public statements, I mentioned and I shared my concerns about the rise in general and after (the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel) in particular,” Maimon said Monday. He added that over the past few years, he had visited every synagogue in Australia that had come under attack.
“My heart is torn apart,” Maimon told a press conference in Sydney, as quoted by CNN, adding that he personally knew and had met individuals who were killed in the attack.
The ambassador described the fear troubling many Jews in Australia, saying, “Nearly in every campus there is a so-called dedicated building where the [Jewish] students can study in a more secure atmosphere. This is insane.”
Maimon extended his condolences to the victims’ families and the broader community. “I would like to convey our heartfelt condolences to the community, to all Australians, and to join the community in their call to the government to take all necessary measures to make sure that the life of every Australian - whether a Jew, a Muslim or a Christian - will be safe,” he said.
Even before Sunday’s massacre, Australia had seen a sharp wave of antisemitism, including the firebombing of the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne.
Days after the arson at Adass Israel, 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 July, a Melbourne synagogue was set on fire while worshipers were inside. The arson occurred on the same night as a disturbance at a Melbourne Israeli restaurant, which sustained extensive damage.
An Australian judge ruled recently that the man who set fire to the Melbourne synagogue was motivated by mental illness, not antisemitism.