Anti-Semitism ‘on the ballot’ as Labor splits over Israel
A pro-Palestinian Labor group has savaged Israel and its political leadership in a pre-election split over a cabinet minister’s visit to the Middle East.
Labor Party activists have told Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus he risks dealing with “war criminals” if he meets senior members of Israel’s government, as former treasurer Josh Frydenberg declared the government’s handling of anti-Semitism and social cohesion will be an election issue.
Mr Dreyfus is due to leave for Israel later this month to help mend ties with Benjamin Netanyahu’s government after the Israeli Prime Minister accused the ALP of allowing anti-Semitism in Australia to flourish.
But intra-party pressure group Labor Friends of Palestine (LFOP) on Friday attacked Mr Netanyahu and called him “a fugitive under ICC arrest warrants for war crimes and crimes against humanity including starvation and extermination’’.
The Labor activist collective also questioned the validity of the Attorney-General’slooming trip, warning that Mr Netanyahu may face further sanctions and claiming all Israeli politicians were supporters of “genocide”.
“The genocidal stain extends across the entire Israeli government and the official opposition,’’ LFOP said in a statement.
The ALP split on Mr Dreyfus’s trip came as Mr Frydenberg warned that Labor’s handling of anti-Semitism and diminishing social cohesion would become key election issues.
“Social cohesion is on the ballot paper,’’ Mr Frydenberg told The Weekend Australian.
And in the strongest pre-election comments yet from the nation’s peak Jewish body, Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said there was “daylight” between the policies of the major parties, in commentary aimed at Labor.
“Jewish Australians have never before voted on the basis of which party will do a better job of keeping us safe and which party will support Israel when the chips are down,’’ Mr Ryvchin said.
“But these are extraordinary times for the community and for the first time there is daylight between the policies of the major parties when it comes to the relationship with Israel.
“There is also a lot of anger in the community about the federal government’s handling of what has become an anti-Semitism crisis, especially in not recognising the distinctness of anti-Semitism, the connection between hatred for Israel and hatred for Jews, and the need to fight it through clear rhetoric and early intervention.”
LFOP warned Mr Dreyfus about the delicate nature of proceedings against Mr Netanyahu and his country over the handling of the war that followed Hamas’s October 7 massacre.
The statement could become highly embarrassing for the Australian government, which has been attempting to reduce the political impact of its positions on Israel.
LFOP said: “Mark Dreyfus should consider the likelihood that the ICC and other international law processes will lay further grave charges against Israeli political and military leaders. Any meeting with war criminals would seriously damage the reputations of Australia and the Attorney-General.
“Rank-and-file members of the Labor Party, at conferences and in branches, have consistently demanded strong effective action from the Australian government against the genocide. Specifically, members call for Australia to meet international law obligations and sanction Israel.
“We call on the federal government to inform the Australian people about the purpose of Mark Dreyfus’s Israel visit.
“The only justification could be to deliver this clear message: that Australia stands unequivocally with international law, and Israel must immediately cease its genocidal actions or face comprehensive sanctions.”
The Australian Federal Police revealed on Friday it had received more than 100 reports of anti-Semitic attacks targeting Australia’s Jewish community in just one month.
Since December 9, the AFP has received 124 reports of crimes for potential offences under the commonwealth legislation.
New figures from Operation Avalite – the taskforce established in response on three anti-Semitic attacks – reveal that 102 reports are under investigation and 22 have not been accepted for further investigation.
Anthony Albanese established the taskforce in response to: the terrorist attack on the Adass Israel synagogue in the Melbourne suburb of Ripponlea, an attack on Jewish Labor MP Josh Burns’s electorate office, also in Melbourne; and an incident in Woollahra in Sydney where a car was torched and buildings vandalised with anti-Israel messages.
However the AFP did not reveal any new details about its investigation into the Adass synagogue attack.
Mr Frydenberg, a former federal Treasurer and campaigner for Jewish rights, said the Prime Minister had vacated the space on anti-Semitism and had failed to follow the leadership of his Labor predecessors Bob Hawke and Julia Gillard.
Blasting a lack of action by the Australian Human Rights Commission, the Jewish former MP for Kooyong said Australia’s future as a tolerant society was on the line during the election and demanded tougher action by Canberra and the states to crack down on blatant racism and criminal acts.
“This is the future of Australia we are talking about and whether we will continue to tolerate the intolerant,’’ he said.
Mr Frydenberg said Labor had, in the past, under Mr Hawke and Ms Gillard, expressed bipartisan support for Israel, understanding its need for security in a region of hostility.
“That bipartisanship has sadly been broken with the Albanese government abandoning Israel in its hour of need,’’ he said.
“But for me what concerns me most is not a particular vote at the UN but our government’s clear failure following the October 7 attacks to stamp out the anti-Semitism, the incitement of hate and violence we are seeing here at home.
“It was the responsibility of our PM and our premiers to set clear, red lines early on that were not to be crossed.
“But they didn’t and as a result those who hate and those who harm have been emboldened.’’
Mr Dreyfus, Labor’s most senior Jewish MP, revealed his intention to travel to Israel to repair the relationship between the Albanese government and Israel, which has become fractured over the Israel-Hamas conflict.
A spokesperson for the Attorney-General said Mr Dreyfus rescheduled his October 2024 visit to Israel, which had to be cancelled, and further details would be released “in due course”.
Tensions flared last month when Mr Netanyahu accused Labor of overseeing a rise in anti-Semitism and criticised Australia’s support for a UN General Assembly resolution calling on Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The UN-backed International Criminal Court in November issued arrest warrants for Mr Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant – along with former Hamas commander Mohammed Deif, who Israel had already claimed to have killed – citing allegation of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Mr Frydenberg’s criticism of the federal government came as a southwest Sydney synagogue on Friday became the latest target of anti-Semitic vandals who spray-painted swastikas and the words “Hitler on top” on the building.
Red and black swastikas defaced the white walls of the synagogue on Railway Ave, Allawah – south of Sydney’s CBD – with police at the scene searching for leads to identify the vandals.
Mr Albanese said those responsible for the latest case of anti-Semitic vandalism should face the full force of the law.
“That’s why my government was the first to introduce legislation to make sure that crimes such as this are called out for what they are,’’ he said.
“They are hateful. And there is no place in Australia, our tolerant, multicultural community, for this sort of criminal activity.
“Australians should respect each other and overwhelmingly do, regardless of their faith. We’re a multicultural nation. We need to be inclusive and cohesive and that’s what my Government is determined to support.’’
Under Labor, a series of policy decisions have been made to crack down on anti-Semitism, threats, violence and hatred towards the Australian Jewish community.
They include: banning the Nazi salute and hate symbols, appointing Jillian Segal as Australia’s first Special Envoy to Combat Anti-Semitism; criminalising doxxing; committing $25m for improved safety and security at Jewish sites across the country; and introducing legislation to criminalise hate speech.
Mr Frydenberg questioned in particular the performance of Victorian Labor Premier Jacinta Allan. “Tragically, Melbourne has become the epicentre of anti-Semitism with the fire bombing of the Adass synagogue, the latest in a long list of violent attacks,’’ he said. “While the government has belatedly announced some new measures to keep the peace they do not go far enough with the pro-Palestinian protesters continuing to act as if they are holding the keys to the city.”
He said that while there had been virulent anti-Semitism from the “Nazi Right”, much of the anti-Israel criticism and rising anti-Semitism since October 7, 2023, was coming from the progressive Left. “Where are our civil institutions like the Human Rights Commission as anti-Semitism has been on the rise? The answer is nowhere, they have been shamefully silent,’’ Mr Frydenberg said.
Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler said it was not surprising people were concerned by the Israel-Gaza conflict.
“Australians see these attacks for what they are: attacks on us all, on our social cohesion, and our Australian way of life,’’ Mr Leibler said. “There is no doubt that voters will consider the government’s positions on these issues at the ballot box.’’
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