North shore synagogue beefs-up security as ‘anti-Jewish sentiment’ rises

Rising antisemitism has resulted in members of one of Sydney’s largest Jewish communities hiding their religious identities in public and facing reluctance to take part in cultural activities, a synagogue leader has warned.

A rise in antisemitism fuelled by the ongoing conflict and unrest in the middle east is leading to members of one of Sydney’s largest Jewish communities hiding their religious identities in public and facing reluctance to take part in cultural activities, a local Jewish leader has warned.

The co-president of a north shore synagogue says an increase in anti-Jewish sentiment on the north shore has prompted a range of new security measures and upgrades at the North Shore Temple Emanuel in a move to ensure the safety of its congregants.

The warning comes amid increased religious tensions in Australia spurred on by war in Gaza which has entered its 10th month after Palestinian terror group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing hundreds of Israeli civilians and taking 240 hostages.

Israel has responded with force with the retaliation campaign resulting in thousands of deaths in Gaza.

Julia Selby – co-director of the North Shore Temple Emanuel – said rising community tensions in Sydney in response to the conflict was leaving some members of the local Jewish community expressing trepidation to take part in religious events due to safety concerns.

Protests have been regularly held in Sydney in response to the conflict.

“Since October 2023 there has been an alarming rise in anti-Jewish incidents in Australia and this is a direct result of the anger and hate about the events taking place on the other side of the world,” she said.

“The impact of this on our local synagogue in Chatswood is that we have upgraded our security and are more careful about who we admit to our services and events.

“We have security gates and bollards to prevent unauthorised entry, 24 hour CCTV coverage and have a guard present for all our services and events.

A photo inside the north shore synagogue

“Rather than being welcoming to people we don’t know, we have to first quiz them as to who they are and why they want to enter our premises – this is not how we would like to present ourselves to the world.”

Ms Selby said staff at the synagogue were also briefed on how to screen emails containing “cryptic messages” and handle calls from unknown people.

“We also receive calls from our Jewish congregants who are distressed about anti-Jewish encounters at their children’s schools and daily lives,” she said.

“Even with these mechanisms in place we have people who are reluctant to come to our services or to wear anything that identifies them as Jewish.

A photo of previous malicious damage at the temple which has prompted a security crackdown.

Julie Selby.

“This is not the norm for Australia and should never be the norm.”

Ms Selby made the comments at a recent Willoughby Council meeting which was also heard from members of a newly formed ‘Willoughby for Gaza’ community group.

Resident Suzie Gold said the group had been founded with the aim of advocating for a ceasefire and “not to be silent or complicit in the deaths of thousands of innocent people”.

Former Greens councillor Lynn Savile also spoke at the meeting, calling for the council to consider scrapping any council contracts it may have with companies linked to Israel as part of a broader ‘sanctions and boycott’ movement which has seen several other Sydney councils investigate cutting financial ties with Israel.

But Ms Selby urged the council to focus on local issues, saying “while overseas foreign policy is not the business of the council, maintaining social cohesion is”.