Netanyahu condemns ‘reprehensible antisemitic attacks' in Melbourne
About 20 people were taking part in Shabbat inside the historic Albert Street synagogue when flammable liquid was poured on the front door of the building and it was set alight.
On Sunday, police presence will be ramped up at a pro-Palestine rally after multiple incidents allegedly targeting the Jewish community in Melbourne on Friday night.
A group of about 20 people, some masked and wearing Palestinian keffiyeh scarves, entered the CBD Israeli restaurant, Miznon, at 8.15pm.
Vision from the Miznon incident shows diners screaming in fear inside the Hardware Lane restaurant, which is part-owned by an Israeli entrepreneur who has been promoting a controversial aid group in Gaza.
Israel's president Isaac Herzog, a member of the Israeli Labor Party, also weighed in, saying: 'This is not the first such attack in Australia in recent months.'
The remarks from Netanyahu – who, along with Hamas leaders, is the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over Israel's operations in Gaza – represent his second thrust into Australian affairs. Amid a spate of attacks on Australian Jewish sites in December, Netanyahu claimed the Australian government was not doing enough to curb antisemitism. Some of those alleged crimes involved organised criminals.
Australia has taken an increasingly hard line against Netanyahu's government for its actions in Gaza and comments from far-right members of Netanyahu's cabinet, who were sanctioned by Australia last month for allegedly inciting violence against Palestinians.
Loading
Netanyahu has become increasingly isolated diplomatically as New Zealand, Canada, the UK and Australia, all traditional friends of Israel, have criticised the length and severity of the war in Gaza following Hamas' October 7 massacre.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Jacinta Allan both condemned the Melbourne incidents on Saturday.
'Antisemitism has no place in Australia,' Albanese said. 'Those responsible for these shocking acts must face the full force of the law, and my government will provide all necessary support toward this effort.'
Allan said: 'This is disgraceful behaviour by a pack of cowards.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Age
28 minutes ago
- The Age
ASX set to slide lower as Wall Street retreats
A modest pullback for US stocks Friday eased the market from all-time highs and left major stock indexes on Wall Street in the red for the week. The S&P 500 closed 0.3 per cent lower a day after setting a record high. The benchmark index's loss for the week followed two straight weekly gains. The Dow Jones dropped 0.6 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite gave up 0.2 per cent after drifting between small gains and losses much of the day. The tech-heavy index was coming off its own all-time high on Thursday. The Australian sharemarket is set to retreat, with futures pointing to a slide of 13 points or 0.2 per cent at the open. The Australian dollar was fetching 65.75 US cents at 5.20am AEST. The US selling capped an uneven week in the market as Wall Street kept an eye on the Trump administration's rollout of new tariff threats against trading partners like Canada and looked ahead to the upcoming corporate earnings reporting season. President Donald Trump said in a letter on Thursday that he will raise taxes on many imported goods from Canada to 35 per cent, deepening the rift between the longtime North American allies. The letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is an aggressive increase to the top 25 per cent tariff rates that Trump first imposed in March. The move was the latest bid by the White House to use threats of higher tariffs on goods imported into the US in hopes of securing new trade agreements with countries around the globe, even historically close trading partners like Canada. Loading The administration had initially set Wednesday as a deadline for countries to make deals with the US or face heavy increases in tariffs. But with just two trade deals announced since April, one with the United Kingdom and one with Vietnam, the window for negotiations has been been extended to August 1. Trump also floated this week that he would impose tariffs of as much as 200 per cent on pharmaceutical drugs and place a 50 per cent tariff on copper imports, matching the rates charged on steel and aluminum.
Sydney Morning Herald
28 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
ASX set to slide lower as Wall Street retreats
A modest pullback for US stocks Friday eased the market from all-time highs and left major stock indexes on Wall Street in the red for the week. The S&P 500 closed 0.3 per cent lower a day after setting a record high. The benchmark index's loss for the week followed two straight weekly gains. The Dow Jones dropped 0.6 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite gave up 0.2 per cent after drifting between small gains and losses much of the day. The tech-heavy index was coming off its own all-time high on Thursday. The Australian sharemarket is set to retreat, with futures pointing to a slide of 13 points or 0.2 per cent at the open. The Australian dollar was fetching 65.75 US cents at 5.20am AEST. The US selling capped an uneven week in the market as Wall Street kept an eye on the Trump administration's rollout of new tariff threats against trading partners like Canada and looked ahead to the upcoming corporate earnings reporting season. President Donald Trump said in a letter on Thursday that he will raise taxes on many imported goods from Canada to 35 per cent, deepening the rift between the longtime North American allies. The letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is an aggressive increase to the top 25 per cent tariff rates that Trump first imposed in March. The move was the latest bid by the White House to use threats of higher tariffs on goods imported into the US in hopes of securing new trade agreements with countries around the globe, even historically close trading partners like Canada. Loading The administration had initially set Wednesday as a deadline for countries to make deals with the US or face heavy increases in tariffs. But with just two trade deals announced since April, one with the United Kingdom and one with Vietnam, the window for negotiations has been been extended to August 1. Trump also floated this week that he would impose tariffs of as much as 200 per cent on pharmaceutical drugs and place a 50 per cent tariff on copper imports, matching the rates charged on steel and aluminum.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce to introduce bill seeking to end net zero 'disgrace', force national energy debate
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce has vowed to introduce a private members bill in order to end what he called the "disgrace" of Labor's net zero policies. Mr Joyce has been a long-time critic of the pursuit of net zero emissions, arguing it risks the nation's energy security and worsens household cost of living pressures. Following the Coalition's loss at the last federal election, the Nationals MP has become more vocal in his push for both major parties to drop the "crazy crusade for net zero". Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has so far remained non-committal when quizzed on whether she would change her party's approach, while Labor has insisted its renewables-led agenda is the best path forward for Australia. As a result, Mr Joyce told Sky News he felt compelled to introduce a bill so the nation could "see where we (politicians) vote" and force a debate about the future of Australia's energy policy. "Look, I'm a realist. I don't think it gets support, but I think it's important for the Australian people understand exactly what is before you," he said. "I've been fighting for this for so long, but I think it's got to a point. We've actually got to say: 'Okay, let's see where we vote, or more to the point, if you don't even want to vote'. "You're so courageous about the about the climate, but you won't even had the debate in the parliament." In a nod to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's trip to Beijing, Mr Joyce claimed the pursuit of net zero was creating a national security risk by impeding Australia's ability to respond to threats in the region. "You have to understand that one of the most dramatic challenges for our capacity for our sovereignty is is China," he said. The Nationals MP argued net zero had "de-industrialised Australia", both robbing it of the ability to attract investment and shorn defence capability. Both factors, he suggested had significantly weakened the nation's ability to stand up to Beijing, as well as resist its influence. Returning to the likelihood of his bill's success, Mr Joyce reiterated he did not expect to garner much support in the parliament. However, he claimed the true "disgrace" of net zero was the continued lack of debate over the policy, as he pressed for MPs to allow his bill to be read and discussed in the House. "I'm hoping that the people who are so courageous, so emboldened with their virtue about changing the temperature of the globe... I want to see if they have that condition that goes all the way to their desire for the Parliament of Australia to have the debate about net zero," he said.
