Waverley Mayor Will Nemesh calls for ‘urgent’ meeting to tackle anti-Semitism in eastern suburbs

Prominent Jewish leaders are backing a mayor’s call for NSW Premier Chris Minns to convene an urgent meeting to tackle the “brazen and alarming” anti-Semitism pervading Sydney’s east.

Prominent Jewish leaders are backing calls for Chris Minns to convene an urgent meeting to tackle the “brazen and alarming” anti-Semitism pervading Sydney’s east.

Waverley mayor Will Nemesh will, at a meeting on Tuesday night, call for the council to write to the NSW Premier in the hope of an arranging an “urgent” meeting.

The mayors and general managers of the Woollahra and Randwick councils would also be invited, along with the state MPs for Vaucluse and Coogee.

Cr Nemesh will make the call following an attack, which authorities are treating as an act of terrorism, at Melbourne’s Adass Synagogue last Friday.

His mayoral minute seeks that state and local government “work collaboratively together to address anti-Semitism” in the eastern suburbs, and notes Waverley has the highest concentration of Jewish residents and synagogues of any NSW local government area.

NSW Premier Chris Minns visited the Emanuel Synagogue in Woollahra after anti-Israel graffiti was sprayed across building and cars.

The eastern suburbs has recently been battling a spike in anti-Semitic graffiti, with the latest spree taking place in Woollahra last month.

Cr Nemesh told this masthead “enough is enough”.

Waverley Mayor Will Nemesh.

“Our local Jewish community feels vulnerable. This is unacceptable.

“The prevalence, frequency and the brazen display of anti-Semitism we are witnessing in our local community is alarming and demands strong leadership to address it.

“There has been an absence of leadership by the federal Labor government on this issue.

“In contrast, the premier has shown strong leadership and a willingness to take action against anti-Semitism.”

An apartment block on Fullerton St, in Woollahra, after it was damaged with anti-Israel graffiti. Picture: Tim Hunter

Mr Minns, whose government is pursuing “urgent changes” to restrict protests outside synagogues and other places of worship, has been contacted for comment about the mayoral minute, which Jewish Care chairman and founder Alex Abulafia praised as “excellent”.

“We can actually have access to those in power to be able to directly say what we think needs to be done to get a practical resolution,” he said, asking: “Who’s actually protecting us other than ourselves and our own security?”

Mr Abulafia also said the federal government had shown “indifference” towards Jewish Australians ever since last year’s protests outside the Opera House, describing this as “devastating”.

“It all started on the 9th of October (when the protests occurred) and these are the repercussions,” he said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tours the inside of Adass Israel Synagogue with community leaders.

“We are totally unsafe. We have done nothing wrong. We are just Jews at home.”

Australian Jewish Association president David Adler said while the organisation welcomed the mayoral minute, the problem went beyond being a local government issue.

“It is the actions and inactions of the federal and state governments which have brought us to this point,” he said

 “The federal Labor government in particular has implemented extremist anti-Israel policies which have emboldened the attacks on the Australian Jewish communities and is recklessly importing thousands of people from terrorist-controlled Gaza,” he said.

“Law enforcement authorities have failed to enforce available laws and some universities have become incubators of anti-Semitism.

“These are some areas of government responsibilities requiring urgent action.”

Cr Nemesh’s minute follows a Jewish human rights organisation, the US-based Simon Wiesenthal Centre, issuing a travel advisory warning Jewish people to avoid Australia in light of Friday’s synagogue attack.

It also follows Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who pledged to provide “ongoing support” for the Jewish community during a visit to Melbourne’s firebombed synagogue, where chaotic scenes erupted as he was surrounded by large crowds.