A mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s Bondi Beach has occurred against a backdrop of a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents across Australia since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault on Israel and the ensuing Gaza war.
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry reported more than 3,700 anti-Jewish incidents in the two years after that attack — a rate roughly five times higher than during the decade before. The incidents ranged from anti-Israel graffiti to arson, including the firebombing and destruction of a Melbourne synagogue.
While other countries have also seen increases in antisemitic attacks, Australia’s spike has been particularly notable. Jewish leaders from around the world gathered in Sydney earlier this month to express concern about the trend.
“What is happening in Australia is not an exception; it should be a wake-up call to communities worldwide,” said Marina Rosenberg, senior vice president for international affairs at the Anti-Defamation League, noting violence and threats against Jews in cities from New York to Buenos Aires. She warned such trends endanger both Jewish safety and democratic stability.
Australia’s government has accused Iran of orchestrating arson attacks last year on the Melbourne synagogue and on a kosher food company in Sydney.
Authorities said two gunmen, identified as a father and son, opened fire at the Bondi Beach Hanukkah event on Sunday, killing at least 15 people and wounding dozens more. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the incident “antisemitic terrorism,” describing it as a “targeted attack on Jewish Australians on the first day of Hanukkah, which should be a day of joy, a celebration of faith.” He urged a “moment of national unity” and asked Australians to stand with their Jewish fellow citizens.
Cities worldwide stepped up security at Hanukkah events in the wake of the shooting. Australia’s Jewish community numbers about 117,000, under 0.5% of the national population.
In 2024, the government appointed a special envoy to combat antisemitism and launched a broad campaign aimed at universities and the media. That plan drew criticism from some who warned it risked conflating legitimate criticism of Israel with antisemitism. A commentary from the University of New South Wales’ Australian Human Rights Institute acknowledged the alarming rise in anti-Jewish incidents but cautioned that not all criticism of Israel is motivated by anti-Jewish sentiment.
In September, Australia joined Canada and the United Kingdom in recognizing a Palestinian state, a step intended to advance momentum toward a two-state solution. In response to the Bondi Beach shooting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Australia’s recognition “pours fuel on the antisemitic fire.”