SYDNEY: Australia\u2019s government defended its record on curbing antisemitism on Saturday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused it of anti-Israel policies, following an arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue.
\nNetanyahu accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese\u2019s center-left Labor government of encouraging crimes such as Friday\u2019s attack on the Adass Israel synagogue through policies including support of a recent UN motion backing a Palestinian state.
\n\u201cUnfortunately, this criminal act cannot be separated from the anti-Israel spirit blowing from the Labor government in Australia,\u201d Netanyahu posted on X.
\nMurray Watt, Australia\u2019s minister for employment and workplace relations, responded that \u201cthe Albanese Government has taken a range of strong actions to stand against antisemitism and to stamp it out from our community.\u201d
\nSince taking office in May 2022, the government had provided $25 million to Jewish organizations to upgrade security and safety at Jewish sites, including schools, banned the Nazi salute and was taking action against hate speech, Watt said.
\n\u201cI respectfully disagree with Prime Minister Netanyahu on this matter,\u201d Watt said in Brisbane, according to a transcript.
\nAlbanese condemned the attack on Friday, saying there was no place for antisemitism in Australia.
\nPolice said on Saturday they were still looking for two people suspected of deliberately starting the synagogue fire that injured one and caused widespread damage in Melbourne, the capital of Victoria state.
\nAustralia has experienced a rise in antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents since the start of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023. Laws passed last year banned public displays of terror group symbols.
\nSome Jewish groups, however, say Albanese\u2019s government has not done enough to tackle the rise of antisemitism.
\nDozens of pro-Palestine protests over the past year have been largely peaceful, although the government raised concerns that protests could inflame community tensions and disrupt social harmony.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SYDNEY: Australia\u2019s government defended its record on curbing antisemitism on Saturday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused it of anti-Israel policies, following an arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue. Netanyahu accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese\u2019s center-left Labor government of encouraging crimes such as Friday\u2019s attack on the Adass Israel synagogue through policies including support […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":447946,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-447934","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n