Australia’s welcoming reputation tarnished with anti-Semitic incidents
Australia’s reputation as a welcoming nation has been tarnished with the number of recorded anti-Semitic incidents remaining at unprecedented highs, an alarming report has revealed.
Australia’s reputation as a welcoming nation has been tarnished, with the number of recorded anti-Semitic incidents remaining at unprecedented highs.
Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Daniel Aghion said on Wednesday the country was no longer seen as a “safe haven” for Jewish communities following the “horrors of the Holocaust”.
“There is a sickness to moral Australian society and its hatred of Jews,” he said as the council released a new report that found NSW was the country’s second most problematic state.
NSW recorded 662 anti-Jewish incidents between October 2024 and September 2025, according to the report, second only to Victoria with 738 incidents.
Mr Aghion urged Australians to not leave their local Jewish communities behind, saying there was not “one single motive” for the incidents.
He said the extremism of the far left and far right were equal and significant contributors.
“This is not the Australian way. If you want to see Jewish continuity in this country, if you want Australia to remain the friendly, inclusive and welcoming place we all know it to be and can be, then stand with us. Don’t leave us behind,” he said.
“We have warned this government for two years of the importance of responding swiftly and strongly to anti-Jewish hatred and the danger of failing to do so.’’
Mr Aghion urged the federal government to act and said it had not implemented a strategy, proposed in July, to combat anti-Semitism.
“Five months later, the government has not implemented the plan,” he said. “That is simply unacceptable.”
Mr Aghion said previous polls had suggested it was time to leave large-scale anti-Israel street protests behind.
“Australians are sick and tired of protests,” he said.
“They don’t want to see protests as they prevent people from going about their business.
“If you are Jewish, you certainly don’t want to go into the city wearing a kippah during a protest.”
Mr Aghion said the anti-Sematic activity had tarnished Australia’s reputation worldwide for being a friendly and welcoming country.
“Australia was seen as a place of haven after the Second World War, far from the horrors of the Holocaust,” he said.
But he said the country was no longer seen as a safe place.
“The surge in anti-Semitism is symptomatic of the broader treatment of political polarisation and an erosion of confidence in our democratic institutions,” he said.
“Sadly, Australia is on the front line of that international fight.”
Anti-Defamation League senior vice-president Marina Rosenberg said the increasing anti-Semitic assaults told a “deeply troubling story” for Jewish communities worldwide.
“Jews are removing mezuzahs from door posts and Stars of David from their necks, symbols of identity now seen as targets,” she said.
“Governments must adopt the global guidelines to fight anti-Semitism, implement national action plans, appoint special envoys and enhance security for Jewish communities.”
While the most recent nationwide 12-month total was less than the previous one, which set an all-time record, there was an increase in the number of arson and vandalism attacks.
Despite the drop in total reports, the report states the frequency of anti-Semitic incidents in Australia remains about three times higher than in any year before the Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023.
There were 18 major anti-Semitic incidents from October 2024 to early February 2025.
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Originally published as Australia’s welcoming reputation tarnished with anti-Semitic incidents
