How one Australian state has responded to a synagogue arson attack
The formation of the task force follows an arson attack on a synagogue in East Melbourne, where 20 worshippers inside escaped unharmed.
Police have arrested and charged a 34-year-old man in connection with the synagogue fire and are investigating whether the incident was an act of terrorism.
The Victorian government is drafting new legislation to ban face masks, the display of terror symbols, and devices used by protesters to attach themselves to objects.
Antisemitic incidents across Australia have escalated since October 2023, prompting the country to pass new anti-hate crime laws in February, including mandatory jail sentences for offences like giving a Nazi salute.
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Telegraph
39 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Anti-Semitism ‘normalised in middle-class Britain'
Anti-Semitism has become normalised in middle-class Britain, a Government-backed report has found. The review, co-authored by Lord Mann, the Government's anti-Semitism adviser, and Dame Penny Mordaunt, the former defence secretary, warned that Jewish people in the UK were suffering increasing prejudice 'in our professions, cultural life [and] public services' and felt they were 'tolerated rather than being respected'. The report, commissioned by the Board of Deputies of British Jews, the country's largest Jewish community organisation, found anti-Semitism to be pervasive in the NHS, at universities and in the arts. The inconsistent policing of hate crimes against Jews, including at pro-Palestine protests, was also highlighted. Writing in The Telegraph, Lord Mann and Dame Penny said they had been 'stunned into silence' by the evidence received during six months of research for the Commission on Anti-Semitism. They said: 'We heard about the noisy demonstrations and how intimidating people find the current environment, but as we dug deeper, what really scared us was the increasing normalisation of far more extreme, personalised and sometimes life-changing impact directed at individuals purely and simply because they are Jewish.' The pair added: 'We are two non-Jews from opposite sides of the political spectrum and we have both come to realise that if our Jewish community is facing discrimination, this is a failure of our society.' Judaism 'should be recognised as an ethnicity' Among 10 recommendations made in their report, which will be published on Tuesday and considered by the Government, are recognising Judaism as an ethnicity, an overhaul of the policing of anti-Semitic crimes and the launch of an 'Antisemitism Training Qualification' for employers. After the Oct 7 attacks, anti-Semitic incidents hit record highs in 2023 and 2024, according to the Community Security Trust, which monitors reports of anti-Jewish hate in Britain. The co-authors said that British Jews were often 'held responsible for the actions of the Israeli government,' which are frequently the subject of pro-Palestine protests. The report also raised concerns that police forces had struggled to effectively tackle anti-Jewish hate, arguing 'improvements can be made to ensure that there is a consistent standard and understanding of anti-Semitism across all police forces throughout the country'. The war in Gaza following the Oct 7 attacks triggered mass protests that were branded 'hate marches' by Suella Braverman, the then home secretary, in October 2023. Police forces have repeatedly been accused of a 'two-tier' approach for allowing what critics have described as 'intimidating' pro-Palestine protests outside Jewish places of worship. Earlier this year, The Telegraph revealed that a Jewish counter-protester was arrested by the Metropolitan Police after he briefly held a sign satirising a Hezbollah terrorist leader at a pro-Palestine march. Turning to the health service, researchers found 'many Jewish employees within NHS organisations' felt that issues in their workplace were not being addressed and that it had been 'swept under the carpet'. 'From evidence that we heard, we can identify that there is a specific unaddressed issue of anti-Semitism within the NHS,' they wrote. Jewish doctors in the NHS have reported a surge in anti-Semitic abuse from colleagues since Oct 7, according to the General Medical Council (GMC), the independent body which regulates the UK medical register. Several NHS staff have been reported for anti-Semitic activities, from workplace abuse to social media posts celebrating Oct 7. In 2024, the NHS suspended a family GP who described the attacks as 'a welcome punch on the nose' but later reinstated him, citing insufficient evidence that he was unfit to practice. Campus concerns The education sector was also criticised in the report for allowing the spread of anti-Semitism on university campuses and in primary school classrooms. Writing in The Telegraph, the co-authors noted one campus where 'staff members who Jewish students trust with their health records [were] shouting for an intifada', an Arabic word which can be used to describe violent Palestinian uprisings against Israel. Anti-Semitism on campuses has surged since Oct 7, with the 2023-24 academic year seeing record reports of verbal abuse, threats and assaults against Jewish students and staff. At Leeds University, for example, a chaplain received death threats and rape threats against his wife after returning from his Israel Defense Force (IDF) reservist duties in Israel. In another instance, a Jewish student society was targeted by a bomb hoax threat. The report also found 'evidence that some faith primary schools inadvertently use anti-Semitic tropes when teaching subjects like Religious Education'. In other professions, the co-authors found examples of professional bodies and trade unions passing motions about Israel that alienated Jewish members. Last month, Jewish members of the British Medical Association, the doctors' union, told The Telegraph they felt unsafe because of motions related to the Middle East conflict, which they deemed anti-Semitic. Earlier this year, in April, a Jewish teacher was loudly heckled for challenging an anti-Israel motion at the National Education Union's annual conference in Bournemouth. Researchers also 'received evidence about where an individual believes that their professional body is actively discriminating against them, but where they require membership in order to be able to work'. Artists 'cancelled because of their heritage' In the arts, the report found 'substantial evidence of more hidden barriers being put in front of Jewish involvement' and examples of cultural institutions 'cancelling artists because of their heritage or ethnicity, or pressure from anti-Semitic organisations'. Lord Mann and Dame Penny said they were moved by 'a young Jewish female performer who told us that following October 7th, venues and promoters who the artist had worked with for years, no longer wanted to engage with her'. The report found there was 'almost nowhere' that British Jews can turn 'where anti-Semitism does not seem present in some form' as well as 'a failure to effectively respond by institutions across the United Kingdom'. The co-authors concluded that anti-Semitism was 'not understood as a form of racism' in Britain and recommended that Judaism be nationally recognised as an ethnicity, as well as a religion, so that anti-Jewish prejudice can be more effectively tackled. Other recommendations included the drafting of a national policy on dealing with anti-Semitism consistently, to be followed by all police forces. The report also asked the Government to come up with a plan within a year to make professional bodies and trade unions safe for Jewish members, and recommended an 'Anti-Semitism Training Qualification' to be introduced by employers. Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, previously said she supported the commission and would consider the recommendations of its report. When it was announced in November, Ms Rayner said: 'We welcome the launch of the Board of Deputies' Commission on anti-Semitism and will look closely at its recommendations as part of our work to keep communities safe.' Labour under pressure The Government has been criticised by Jewish groups within the Labour Party for 'performative' anti-Israel policies such as suspending trade talks and embargoing arms sales. Labour Against Anti-Semitism, a campaign group, said the policies 'added to a climate of intolerance and hate' toward British Jews. Sir Keir Starmer is under pressure from Labour's Left and allies such as France to go further and recognise a Palestinian state. Israel has said any such recognition would be a 'reward' to Hamas. While the Prime Minister is theoretically in favour of recognising a Palestinian state as part of a Middle East peace process, he is understood to be 'reticent' about signing up to the French plans. However, the mooted emergence of a new Left-wing, pro-Palestinian party under Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader, could also increase pressure on Sir Keir to act. In recent weeks, the Government was forced to intervene in a row over anti-Semitism after chants at Glastonbury music festival calling for the death of Israeli soldiers were broadcast live by the BBC. Bob Vylan, a rap duo, led calls for 'death to the IDF' while performing at the festival. The Prime Minister described the chants as 'appalling hate speech' and said the BBC had questions to answer over why they were broadcast live. The broadcaster's head of music stepped back from day-to-day duties over the row after Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, demanded more 'accountability' from the corporation's leadership. Lord Mann previously told The Telegraph that 'heads should roll' at the BBC after it aired a documentary featuring the nephew of a Hamas official as a narrator. An NHS spokesman said: 'It is completely unacceptable for anyone to experience racism, discrimination or prejudice in the health service, whether staff or patient, and the NHS takes any instance of anti-Semitism or discrimination extremely seriously. 'The NHS provides care and treatment for everyone regardless of race, faith, or background, and all NHS healthcare providers should have policies in place to address issues like this in the workplace.'
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Evidence of UK anti-Semitism stunned us – this issue is urgent for the whole country
We are hard-nosed politicians. We are not shrinking violets who run around being easily offended and we are used to dealing with the extremes of human emotions and catastrophe through our parliamentary case work in the past. Even with decades of these experiences, we were still stunned into silence by the evidence that we received as independent chairs of the Board of Deputies Commission on Anti-Semitism, particularly from young people in the Jewish community. We spent months hearing evidence from the community, professionals and students about their experiences of anti-Semitism and were alarmed by the combination of the rawness of the impact of people's everyday experiences intertwined with the extraordinary routines and normality within which this is occurring. We are two non-Jews from opposite sides of the political spectrum and we have both come to realise that if our Jewish community is facing discrimination, this is a failure of our society. We must ensure that everyone enjoys the rights and protections that we have worked so hard to develop over many years. What are we meant to say as hardened politicians to a young Jewish female performer who told us that following October 7 venues and promoters, who the artist had worked with for years, no longer wanted to engage with her? Or to students who saw their research staff members coming from an encampment with a megaphone, and disabilities liaison staff members who Jewish student's trust with their health records shouting for an Intifada? We were told about the experience of a Jewish member of a professional body describe that body as taking years to investigate incidents of anti-Semitism, and heavily editing articles about anti-Semitism and the Jewish experience so as not to cause 'offence' to its to broader membership. We heard about the noisy demonstrations and how intimidating people find the current environment, but as we dug deeper what really scared us was the increasing normalisation of far more extreme, personalised and sometimes life changing impact directed at individuals purely and simply because they are Jewish. Worrying dilemmas of where Jewish professionals believed that their professional body was actively discriminating against them but where they required membership from this body to be able to work and acquire the necessary protections. One of our 10 recommendations is that anti-Semitism cannot simply be sidelined as an issue of religious difference, allowing organisations to pretend to themselves that they don't have to deal with the thornier issue of racism directed against individual human beings. This is an urgent issue not just for the Jewish community but for the United Kingdom as a whole. Jews have lived in this country for centuries and they have contributed greatly to our country. Any attempt to marginalise British Jews in our professions, cultural life, public services or any other arena harm us all. We are all harmed if we tolerate the abuse of some of our fellow citizens by those who hold warped or extreme views. All we are trying is achieve is to add value to what others are already doing. Typically with reports, we send a list of recommendations to government and this report certainly will be placed on the table of the Prime Minister and his Ministers and that of every political party leader. But there is a wider responsibility that we are concerned about. All our institutions, public sector and private sector have a responsibility to their Jewish employees, customers, neighbours and partners, to ensure that they are treated with equal respect and are able to get on with their lives with no negatives. Our recommendations are intended to help everybody to step up to the mark and play their small role in ensuring that we can each say to our Jewish friends, whoever they are and wherever they are, that you are not alone in our country. Lord Mann is the Government's independent adviser on anti-Semitism. Dame Penny Mordaunt is the former defence secretary
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Tragic update on out-of-control car driven by 91-year-old woman which ploughed into pedestrians
A grandfather has died after a silver Toyota Yaris smashed into his family while they were walking along the footpath in Melbourne 's east. The car, which was driven by a 91-year-old woman, mounted the kerb near a playground on Coleman Road in Wantirna South about 12.20pm on Thursday. Three members of the same family - a 59-year-old grandmother, her 60-year-old partner, and their two-year-old grandson - were walking in the same direction as the car when they were struck from behind. The grandmother, who was a local resident, died at the scene. The grandfather had been transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries but Victoria Police confirmed on Friday evening that he had died. Their young grandson was rushed to The Royal Children's Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The reserve and damaged park bench where the car ended up were cordoned off on Friday, while several bouquets of flowers were laid on the nearby footpath. The 'terribly shaken' elderly driver escaped with minor scratches and was taken to hospital for assessment and blood testing. Police said the 91-year-old is yet to be interviewed. The investigation into the exact circumstances surrounding the collision remains ongoing. It is understood the driver collided with a street sign and struck the pedestrians before her car ploughed through a fence and came to a stop near the playground. 'It came from behind,' Superintendent Justin Goldsmith said. 'It looks like it has lost control about 40m or 50m before the collision with the people who were walking on the other side of that road. 'No one was hit at the park thankfully.' A local resident told Sunrise on Friday that lollies and pieces of orange were scattered across her front yard following the collision, along with debris from the crash. Supt Goldsmith said it was too early to say whether the driver had suffered a medical episode when she lost control. Crash investigators will examine whether speed was a contributing factor. Anyone who witnessed the incident, has dashcam footage or information that could assist police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. 'That will be subject to the investigation, but it is a downhill section of road, so if there has been a lack of control to some degree there is a possibility the car would have picked up speed as it's driven further down Coleman Road,' Supt Goldsmith said. It comes after CCTV emerged of the out-of-control car travelling along Coleman Road moments before the collision. The footage also showed a couple pushing a pram along a footpath. It is unclear if the group was the same trio who were hit. The crash happened during the first week of the Victorian school holidays and brought the state's road toll to 14 lives lost in the last seven days. 'We're facing a horrific month for road trauma,' Supt Goldsmith said. 'We've lost so many lives and had so many life-threatening injuries over the course of last week (and it) is completely horrific and unacceptable.'
