Latest news with #CairoTakeaway
The Guardian
26-02-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
‘Mind-blowingly stupid': Asio chief criticises News Corp's alleged attempt to provoke Middle Eastern cafe staff
Australia's domestic spy chief has criticised an alleged attempt by News Corp staff to provoke workers at a Middle Eastern restaurant into making prejudicial comments as 'mind-blowingly stupid' and 'unhelpful' during a Senate estimates hearing. Police were called to the popular Cairo Takeaway in the Sydney suburb of Newtown earlier this month after a confrontation involving the venue's staff, a team from News Corp Australia and a man wearing a Star of David cap. Hesham El Masry, the owner of the restaurant, alleged there was an attempt to provoke an antisemitic response from his staff in the presence of Daily Telegraph reporters. The restaurant and its owner have been vocal supporters of Palestine on social media. Asio's director-general, Mike Burgess, was provided with an overview of the case by Queensland senator Gerrard Rennick during Tuesday night's hearing. Rennick accused the Daily Telegraph team of 'stirring trouble' and trying to 'bait' staff into making a prejudiced statement. 'In that case, if those facts are correct, then that is just mind-blowingly stupid, is it not, and inappropriate that you would do something to generate a headline,' Burgess told the hearing. '[It's] entirely unhelpful and think about the poor person on the receiving end of that.' Greens senator David Shoebridge then questioned why Burgess was not more critical of the alleged sting operation and suggested it deserved more attention from the domestic spy agency, which has repeatedly warned of social division. 'The concerns that many people have is this was not a moment of stupidity, this was a planned, resourced and approved sting operations to try and sow division on the streets of Sydney,' Shoebridge told the hearing. 'It didn't appear to be stupid, it appeared to be venal, planned, nasty and divisive … That is more troubling than something mind-blowingly stupid'. In response, Burgess stood by his characterisation of the incident, as described by Rennick, but said he would not provide further comment without more details. Burgess also said the incident was not a priority for the agency. 'It came to the attention of Asio but do I have multiple media agencies doing such things? No. In terms of decisions about where I put the weight of my organisation, this is not one of them.' The Daily Telegraph has been contacted for a response to comments by Burgess and Shoebridge. Ben English, the editor of the Daily Telegraph, has previously said the newspaper 'never intended to provoke an incident at the Cairo Takeaway restaurant' but acknowledged 'our approach could have been better handled'. English said the paper had visited multiple venues across Sydney in an attempt to report on 'the rise of antisemitism and … how it is affecting the daily lives of Jewish people in Sydney'. CCTV images from inside the cafe seen by Guardian Australia showed a man wearing a Star of David cap and necklace entering the busy premises. El Masry said that the man was served tea with 'no issues'. The footage then shows the man moving to one side of the cafe, where he 'lingered' for about two minutes, raising the concern of staff, he said. The waitress walked outside, where a reporter, photographer and cameraman appeared to be waiting, he said. A verbal altercation then took place between the waitress, the man in the cap and the journalists. 'That is out-and-out intimidation. Who comes into a restaurant and asks me a question about this gentleman who I don't even know?' the woman is heard asking the journalists in footage posted to social media.
The Guardian
14-02-2025
- The Guardian
News Corp team confronted after alleged attempt to provoke staff at Sydney Middle Eastern restaurant
Police were called to a popular Middle Eastern restaurant in Sydney's inner west earlier this week after a confrontation involving the venue's staff, a team from News Corp Australia and a man wearing a Star of David cap. NSW Police said they opened an investigation after a staff member at Cairo Takeaway in Newtown alleged she had felt intimidated by a customer who entered the restaurant at about midday on Tuesday. The police said their investigation concluded on Wednesday, with no criminal offences identified. Hesham El Masry, the owner of the restaurant, alleged there was an attempt to deliberately provoke an antisemitic response from his staff members in the presence of Daily Telegraph reporters. The restaurant and its owner have been vocal supporters of Palestine on social media. CCTV images from inside the cafe seen by Guardian Australia showed a man wearing a Star of David cap and necklace entering the busy premises. El Masry said that the man was served tea with 'no issues'. The footage then shows the man moving to one side of the cafe, where he 'lingered' for about two minutes, raising the concern of staff, he said. The waitress walked outside, where a reporter, photographer and cameraman appeared to be waiting, he said. A verbal altercation then took place between the waitress, the man in the cap and the journalists. 'That is out-and-out intimidation. Who comes into a restaurant and asks me a question about this gentleman who I don't even know?' the woman is heard asking the journalists in footage posted to social media. The man wearing the Star of David cap adds: 'I think something's upsetting her.' In a separate video, the woman tells one of the journalists: 'I'll do exactly what you did to me – filming'. The journalist starts to respond, and the woman can be heard saying: 'You're hanging around with the wrong crowd. That's divisive journalism.' The man in the cap then says: 'What do you mean the wrong crowd?' The woman responds: 'You wanted to make antisemitic statements up here? Look at you in shame, look at you, tails between your legs. 'You picked the wrong restaurant to try this shit in.' The video ends with Daily Telegraph journalist Danielle Gusmaroli asking the woman not to touch her phone. The man in the cap can be heard saying 'do not touch her'. In a series of posts on X – and later posted to Instagram by the restaurant – Fahad Ali, a geneticist with the University of Sydney and member of the Palestine Action Group who was not in the restaurant but who spoke to people who were there, said the man asked the staff member: 'Do you have a problem with me because I'm Jewish?' 'The server was shocked and completely taken aback. She said 'excuse me?' The man continued: 'you're intimidating me, you're making me feel unsafe',' he wrote on X. Cairo Takeaway chef, Talaat Sehia, said via X that police had spoken with him and the waitress, who he said was left 'distraught' after the incident. El Masry alleged the man in the cap had 'clearly come in looking for trouble'. 'I'm pretty certain that it was a planned operation,' he said. The restaurant was preparing for its Gadigal to Gaza fundraising event on Sunday, he said. According to a News Corp source who spoke on the condition of anonymity, newsroom staff were appalled by the incident. The source said they were disgusted that it could have been sanctioned and even more disgusted that there appeared to be zero consequences. The Daily Telegraph, News Corp Australia and Gusmaroli did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
