For the second time in little over two weeks a leafy suburb of eastern Sydney, an enclave of Jewish Australians, has been targeted by arsonists in a vicious anti-Semitic attack.
Emergency services attended Magney Street in Woollahra about 1am on Wednesday in response to reports of a vehicle fire.
The vehicle and one other, as well as two buildings and the footpath, were also sprayed with anti-Semitic graffiti reading “kill Israiel” (sic).
After the fire was extinguished, police officers set up a crime scene and commenced an investigation into the brazen attack.
Police want to speak to two people who they believe were in the vicinity at the time of the incident. They are described as of slim build, between 15 and 20 years of age, and wearing face coverings and dark clothing.
Anyone with information in relation to this latest incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese “unequivocally” condemned the attack, and said it stood against the values of respect for diversity that Australia was built on.
He told ABC RN he stands with Jewish community and said there was “no place for anti-Semitism in this country or anywhere else”.
“This isn’t an attack on government, this is an attack on people because they happen to be Jewish,” Mr Albanese told ABC RN.
“This is a hate crime, it’s as simple as that.”
“Overwhelmingly, Australians are respectful people. Australians want to live peacefully side by side, and Australians reject this abhorrent criminal behaviour.
“This is not a political act. This does not change anything that is occurring on the ground in the Middle East. This is an attack against their fellow Australians.”
Mr Albanese is set to meet with officers from a national taskforce established to investigate anti-Semitic threats, violence and hatred across the nation this morning.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the “despicable people” behind the “horrifying” incident would be met with a “zero tolerance response by NSW Police”.
“People have moved from around the world to move to Australia to escape this kind of hatred and this kind of division in our community,” Mr Minns said.
“It is horrifying. You have to appreciate that Sydney, per capita, has the second number of Holocaust survivors in the world. They’ve come to Australia specifically to be free from this kind of hate around racism, specifically.”
The premier said while anti-Semitism was “building up”, he insisted the vast majority of people in NSW “completely repudiate this disgusting hate crime”.
“This is not what we stand for. We need to call it out for what it is: it is racism, it is anti-Semitism. It is not what we are in Australia and it will be met with a full response.”
Local member for Vaucluse Kellie Sloane demanded the culprits behind the vandalism “face the full force of the law”.
“This breaks my heart. These terrifying attacks on the Jewish community must stop,” she said.
It is the second time Woollahra — a suburb where 14 per cent of residents identify as Jewish, according to the 2021 Census — has been targeted by arsonists.
In late November, almost a dozen cars and a number of properties, including celebrity chef Matt Moran’s restaurant, Chiswick, were vandalised with anti-Israel graffiti.
A man allegedly responsible for the spree was arrested at Sydney airport days later and charged with 21 offences, including 14 counts of destroy or damage property.
The 20-year-old was alleged to have caused upwards of $100,000 worth of damage.
The attack also comes days after Melbourne’s Adas Israel Synagogue was set alight on Friday morning in what authorities determined was an act of terror.
After days of political finger-pointing by the Opposition and criticism from Jewish leaders, Mr Albanese attended the gutted Ripponlea synagogue on Tuesday and pledged to provide “whatever support is necessary” to rebuild the community hub.
He said he would ensure “those who perpetrated this evil crime do not receive any benefit and indeed get the message that Australia is not a country that will tolerate such an act.”
The Joint Counter Terror Team investigating the arson attack confirmed authorities were looking for three suspects but would not give details on who the attackers might be or whether they are known to them.
Mr Albanese’s visit to the synagogue followed those by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and Israel’s ambassador Amir Maimon, who took aim at the Australian government for its lax response to rising anti-Semitism.
“The Jewish community deserves better. Australians deserve better. The Government must do better,” the Ambassador said.
The Coalition had earlier questioned why it had taken until Tuesday for Mr Albanese to visit the synagogue and have accused the Government of being too weak on anti-Semitism and allowing the bigotry to fester — saying that had ultimately led to the terror attack.
The rise in anti-Semitism in Australia will now be the target of the newly-established Special Taskforce Avalight, as announced on Monday.
Anti-Semitic attack blamed on Government shifting Israel policy
A number of Jewish leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have criticised the Albanese Government’s shifts in policy on Israel.
Mr Netanyahu linked the Ripponlea synagogue attack with Australia’s “extreme anti-Israel behaviour”, specifically its recent vote for a UN resolution calling for Israel to leave parts of Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong defended the vote and said criticism of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza did not equate with anti-Semitism and again urged Israel to abide by international law.
However, prominent Jewish leaders have also linked the brazen anti-Semitic attacks to the vote and what the chief executive of the Zionist Federation of Australia, Alon Cassuto, described as “drastic shifts on longstanding policy on Israel”.
“Jew-hatred is escalating into domestic terrorism, fuelled by the demonisation of Israel and a persistent failure to call out incitement,” Mr Cassuto said in a statement.
After the synagogue attack, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre in the United States said it was preparing to warn Jews about travelling to Australia. It too noted the synagogue firebombing coincided with the “anti-Israel” vote.
Executive Council of the Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said the Woollahra attack was a bid to “drive us from our country and make our fellow Australians fearful of associating with us”.
“Another act intended to terrorise us, drive us from our country and make our fellow Australians fearful of associating with us. How long will this continue and with what horrors will it end?”
Mr Ryvchin called on Australians to “stand with us” and said the council expected the AFP taskforce to “bring the perpetrators swiftly to justice”.
“Don’t let this evil tear our country to pieces,” he said.
Benjamin Klein, a board member of the Adass Israel Synagogue, told ABC News Breakfast the Albanese Government may finally be “getting the message” that anti-Semitic hatred had begun to “fester” after the string of firebombings.
“People have to wake up, the government has to see, the police have to see that this is something that really needs to be sorted through and stamped out,” Mr Klein said.
He said family members had suggested after the attacks that he consider leaving Australia, where he was born and raised, and move to Israel.
“I do believe that (the Government is) now pushing it as hard as they can. I believe they’re trying hard at the moment,” Mr Klein continued.
“Clearly it’s getting out of control and I do believe they’re getting the message now and things are starting to turn, definitely.”
https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/woollahra-firebombing-car-torched-homes-damaged-in-anti-semitic-graffiti-attack-in-prominent-jewish-suburb-c-17043695
