Australian state premier calls synagogue attack an escalation in antisemitism
The attempted arson in Sydney was the latest in a wave of incidents that have targeted the country’s Jewish community
In the latest event, police were notified of antisemitic graffiti on a synagogue in the inner suburb of Newtown early on Saturday. An arson attempt was also made on the synagogue, police later said.
“This is an escalation in antisemitic crime in New South Wales. Police and the government remain very concerned that an accelerant may have been used,” Minns, the leader of Australia’s most populous state, said on Sunday in a televised media conference alongside state police commissioner Karen Webb.
“In the last 24 hours, these matters have now been taken over by counterterrorism command,” Webb said.
A house in Sydney’s east, a hub of the city’s Jewish community, was also daubed with antisemitism graffiti, police said on Saturday, adding they were also probing offensive comments on a street poster in the suburb of Marrickville.