The Australian government has labelled the Melbourne synagogue fire an “attack on Australia” as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu demands Labor do more to stop “vile” antisemitic attacks.
A 34-year-old man from New South Wales has appeared in court, charged over allegedly entering the grounds of the East Melbourne Hebrew congregation on Albert Street at about 8pm on Friday, pouring a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and setting it on fire.
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, travelled to Melbourne on Sunday morning to meet with Jewish leaders and the synagogue’s Rabbi Dovid Gutnick, and said the attacks harmed not only the Jewish community, but the broader Australian community, as well.
“[This] is not simply an arson attack; what matters here is there is an attack on Australia, an attack on Australian values. And we are here today in solidarity to stand together with the community,” he said.
“This government, including [former attorney-general] Mark Dreyfus in the last term of parliament, has taken the strongest actions Australia has ever taken in making hate symbols unlawful, in making calls for violence and hate speech have serious criminal penalties. But the job of making sure we eliminate antisemitism belongs to every single one of us.”
State police have not confirmed if two other attacks that took place on Friday night are linked.
Burke also confirmed he had spoken to Israel’s ambassador to Australia, who thanked him for travelling to Melbourne to visit the synagogue and condemning the attack.
Earlier on Sunday, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the attacks “reprehensible” in a series of posts on X.
“The reprehensible antisemitic attacks, with calls of ‘Death to the IDF’ and an attempt to attack a place of worship, are severe hate crimes that must be uprooted.
“The State of Israel will continue to stand alongside the Australian Jewish community, and we demand that the Australian government take all action to deal with the rioters to the fullest extent of the law and prevent similar attacks in the future.”
Netanyahu was joined on social media by Israeli president Isaac Herzog, who overnight said on X that he “condemn[ed] outright the vile arson attack targeting Jews in Melbourne’s historic and oldest synagogue on the Sabbath” and that the attack must be Australia’s “last”.
“It is intolerable that in 2025, we are still faced with the chilling image of an attempt to burn Jews alive as they pray, and attacks on Jewish businesses,” he said, urging the government to confront the “stain” of antisemitism with “urgency and resolve”.
Foreign minister for Israel, Gideon Sa’ar, said on Saturday via X that Israel “stands firmly with the Jewish community in Australia” and that the Australian government “must do more to fight this poisonous disease”.
Sarah Schwartz, executive officer of the Jewish Council of Australia, condemned the arson attack and said attacks on synagogues were “attacks on the entire Jewish community”, adding that the council stood in solidarity with those affected.
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“All people are entitled to practise their religion in safety,” she told Guardian Australia on Sunday. She said the act of antisemitism had been “used for political gain, to smear the Palestine solidarity movement”.
“These responses fuel division. We urge politicians not to engage in kneejerk responses, and to instead support grassroots efforts between communities to combat racism.”
Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin said the events were a “severe escalation” and that the antisemitism crisis was “getting worse”.
“Those who chant for death are not peace activists. Those who would burn houses of prayer with families inside do not seek an end to war. There is a violent ideology at work in our country that operates on the fringes of politics and social movements, that taps into anger and prejudice,” he said in a statement.
Opposition communications spokesperson Melissa McIntosh told the ABC Insiders program on Sunday “something needs to be done” to prevent ongoing attacks.
McIntosh also described the incident as an attack on “all Australians” and pushed the Albanese government to better protect the Jewish community in Australia.
“Why isn’t [Albanese] convening national cabinet and bringing the states together with urgency to address this issue? There’s a number of things that the government could be doing yet,” she said.
“We’re sitting here today discussing another horrible attack where there are kids inside the synagogue. The person lit the synagogue, a place of worship, when families were inside. That is such a disgusting attack, a hateful attack on Australians.”
Burke said now was a moment for “unity”, and he would not comment on whether the government would call a national cabinet meeting in response to the attack.