Israel accuses Albanese of inciting anti-Semitic attacks

Recent attacks on Australia’s Jewish community have been linked to the Albanese government’s anti-Israel position, it’s been suggested.

Anthony Albanese’s government has been accused of inciting anti-Semitism in Australia by maintaining an “anti-Israel position” on it’s latest vote at the United Nations.

Israel government spokesperson David Mencer suggested recent attacks in Australia, including the firebombing of Melbourne’s Adass Israel Synagogue and two separate acts in the Sydney suburbs of Woollahra and Arncliffe, were linked to Labor’s position on Israel.

“Our Prime Minister has made crystal clear that the deliberate burning of a synagogue in Melbourne, the attacks on Jews in Sydney – these abhorrent of anti-Semitism, of Jew hatred – we here in Israel certainly expect the Australian authorities to use their full weight to prevent such anti-Semitic acts in the future,” Mr Mencer told Sky New First Edition.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Rabbi Solomon Kohn from the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne. Picture: Supplied

“I’ll be straight with you, Israel does believe that it is impossible to separate the reprehensible act of burning down a synagogue for heaven’s sake, from the extreme anti-Israeli position of your Labor government in Australia.

“It brings me no pleasure to say that whatsoever.

“Our Prime Minister has said that anti-Israel sentiment, coming from the (Australian) Labor government is leading to anti-Semitism. Anti-Israel rhetoric leads to attacks on Jews. It’s incitement. It’s actually what Hamas and Iran are also engaged in. Incitement against the Jewish state leads to physical attacks on Jews.”

Children from the local Jewish community look at the tributes left outside the torched Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne. Picture: AFP

Members of the Palestinian Authority in Australia meanwhile have lauded Labor’s attempts to boost their power in the UN, while also calling for more funding for the controversial UN aid agency that critics say has links to Hamas.

As Mr Albanese called for unity against anti-Semitism while defending his government against claims its support for anti-Israel motions at the UN had emboldened attacks on Australian Jews, the nation’s most prominent Palestinian lobby said Labor’s moves sent a “powerful message” to Israel.

“The general delegation of Palestine acknowledges with deep appreciation the positive trajectory of the Australian government in increasingly recognising and supporting the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people,” the Palestinian Authority’s head, Izzat Salah Abdulhadi, told The Australian.

“Recent achievements in the international legal struggle for Palestinian rights send a powerful message to Israel, the occupying power, that the rule of law will prevail; Israel’s unlawful occupation will end and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to self-determination, will be achieved.”

Australian Ambassador James Larsen speaks during the UN General Assembly emergency special session on the Israel-Hamas war at the United Nations in New York. Picture: X

But Mr Albanese is under fire after he claimed he was “not sure” what the vote was going to be about.

The Coalition has accused the prime minister of “gaslighting the Australian Jewish community” after he appeared to either not be across the controversial vote, or not prepared to state while speaking at the Sydney Jewish Museum that Labor would not be on the same page as Israel and the US on the resolutions on Thursday AEDT aligned with that of major allies, including Britain, France, Japan, and Canada.

Australia was among a large majority of countries who backed two resolutions – one calling for a ceasefire in Gaza without removing Hamas and the other supporting the work of the contentious aid agency United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

The government restarted financial support for UNRWA earlier this year after the organisation was cleared following an investigation into allegations members were involved with terrorist group Hamas.

But this has upset critics who say the links between UNRWA and Hamas remain.

Israel has restricted UNRWA’s activities, which Australia has opposed.

A combined 159 countries voted in support of the UNRWA resolution and 158 backed the ceasefire resolution, with the vast majority of Israel’s Western allies supporting both.

Australia’s ambassador to the UN, James Larsen, said Australia had apprehensions about the wording of the resolutions but voted for them because it was dedicated to stopping the suffering in Gaza.

“The current situation in Gaza is catastrophic, the human suffering unbearable,” he said. “Israel must take urgent action to alleviate this humanitarian crisis, in line with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice.”