Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s glowing letter of praise for NSW Premier Chris Minns

NSW Premier Chris Minns. Picture: Getty Images

NSW Premier Chris Minns was handed a glowing letter of praise from Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Tuesday night during an event marking 77 years of Israeli independence at the Four Seasons in Sydney.

“It is with my deepest gratitude that I write to commend you for your outstanding leadership during this deeply challenging time for the State of Israel, the Jewish community in New South Wales, and the broader Australian Jewish community,” Herzog wrote in the letter, presented to Minns by Israeli ambassador Amir Maimon.

“I have every confidence that, under your continued leadership, New South Wales will remain a place where all citizens will live with dignity, peace, and security.”

Israeli President Isaac Herzog. Picture: AFP

Funny, because we don’t recall Anthony Albanese receiving any letter from Herzog, nor Victoria Premier Jacinta Allan, whose home state bears a greater concentration of Jewish residents than any other in the country.

A head of state writing directly to the leader of a sub-national government?

It would be easy to interpret the gesture as a finger in the eye to the PM and other state leaders. Only a fool would see it otherwise.

As we reported a week ago, Albanese deliberately snubbed the marking of Israel’s independence this year by forgoing his usual statement of congratulation, the date itself landing in proximity to the election on Saturday. We’d never suggest the two were related.

Spotted in the crowd at the Four Seasons was NSW Liberal leader Mark Speakman and his state director Chris Stone, Mark Walton and Albert Joseph from the NSW counter-terrorism command, as well as Bondi Westfield hero cop Amy Scott (who received a shoutout from the stage), Police Minister Yasmin Catley (now looking for a new commissioner), and Indigenous leader Warren Mundine.