The New South Wales (NSW) government has vowed to address rising antisemitic incidents after a shocking attack in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, in which multiple properties were vandalized with anti-Israel graffiti, and a stolen Toyota Corolla was torched.

Emergency services were called to Magney Street, where they found a burned-out car and graffiti targeting another car, two buildings, and the footpath. Police confirmed the Toyota Corolla had been stolen and driven to the scene by vandals. Images from the area showed graffiti featuring apparent anti-Israel slogans.

The incident comes on the heels of an antisemitic arson attack against the Adas Shul in Melbourne last Friday, which severely damaged it.

Authorities are seeking two suspects described as slim, aged 15–20, and wearing face coverings and dark clothing.

NSW Premier Chris Minns denounced the incident as a “shocking antisemitic hate crime.” Speaking at a press conference, he called it “a violent act of destruction, clearly anti-Semitic, designed to strike fear into the community.”

Minns hinted at potential legislative changes to ensure community safety. “If we need laws in place to protect what has been built over multiple decades and make sure people feel safe in Australia, that’s what we will do,” he said. “We cannot have a situation where we are importing conflicts around the world onto the streets of Sydney.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also condemned the attack, calling it an “outrage.”

Police Commissioner Karen Webb confirmed the reactivation of Operation Shelter, a security measure first implemented following the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. “We are increasing patrols, community engagement, and high-visibility police presence,” she said.

Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna noted that the incident was not linked to a similar antisemitic attack on November 21, in which a car was set alight and multiple buildings in the area were vandalized.

Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, described the attack as “another act intended to terrorise us” and called on Australians to stand against such incidents. “How long will this continue, and with what horrors will it end?” he asked.

Minns highlighted the emotional toll on Holocaust survivors in Australia, who make up one of the highest per capita populations globally. “This would be particularly distressing to them,” he said, urging a united response against antisemitism. “Your average Australian, 99 per cent of them, regard this as disgraceful and will stand up against it.”

Jewish leaders say violence and discrimination against their community have reached unprecedented levels, with most incidents reported in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia’s largest cities where 85% of the nation’s Jewish population live.

Almost 117,000 Jewish people live in Australia, according to the last census in 2021, or 0.46% of the 25.4 million residents. The government says only Israel is home to more Holocaust survivors than Australia on a per capita basis.

Here’s a look at only some of the cases investigated by Special Operation Avalite: Read about additional incidents here and here and here. It should also be noted that antisemitism in Australia preceded the October 7 attack.

Dec. 11: Car set on fire and antisemitic graffiti attacks in the eastern Sydney suburb of Woollahra

Police are looking for two male suspects, estimated to be aged between 15 and 20, seen running from Magney St. in Woollahra when a car fire was reported at 1 a.m.

Two cars including the one that burned had been graffitied. Two homes and the sidewalk had also been spray-painted with what police described as “antisemitic writing” that included an apparently misspelled “Kill Israiel.”

Woollahra is a center of Jewish life in Sydney and one of the wealthiest suburbs in the nation.

Dec. 6: Arson attack on Adass Israel Synagogue in a southeastern Melbourne suburb

The Dec. 6 attack has been declared a terrorist act after authorities concluded there was a political motive. Police are searching for three suspects.

Two worshippers saw two men with their faces covered spreading a liquid accelerant around the building before it ignited.

Police have not said what role the third person played or whether they knew the suspects’ identities.

Nov. 21: Car set on fire, antisemitic acts on Wellington Street, Woollahra

Police arrested two suspects who allegedly launched an hour-long rampage of anti-Israel destruction in a different part of Woollahra.

Police were alerted to a car fire in Wellington St. around 12:30 a.m. Two men with their faces covered were seen in CCTV spray-painting expletives and slogans referring to Israel on 10 cars in the vicinity of Wellington St., including the car that was burned.

They also graffitied three buildings.

Mohammed Farhat, 20, was arrested on Nov. 25 at Sydney International Airport as he prepared to fly to Indonesia. His alleged accomplice Thomas Stojanovski, 19, was arrested at his home on Nov. 28.

Both remain in custody awaiting trial on multiple charges. They each face prison sentences of up to 10 years.

June 19: Fires lit in front of Jewish lawmaker’s office in a Melbourne suburb

At least five people were seen near Josh Burns’ office in Barkly St. at about 3.20 a.m. when the attack occurred, police said.

They smashed windows and graffitied the outside of his office in red paint with the slogan: “Zionism is fascism.”

Investigators said small fires were lit in the telecommunications pits at the front of the building before the group ran from the scene.

Burns, a government lawmaker, said at the time that “no amount of aggression” would “change what’s happening in the Middle East.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC / AP)