2024 Melbourne synagogue attack

Adass Israel Synagogue The targeted synagogue in the December 2024 attack was the Orthodox Adass Israel Synagogue of Melbourne, located in Ripponlea, Victoria. It was built in 1965, designed by Ernest Fooks, and opened on 19 September 1965. It is part of the Adass Israel Congregation, a Jewish group in Melbourne that traces its origins to a split in the Elwood Talmud Torah Hebrew Congregation in 1939/1940. Some of its early members were boys and men who had been sent to Australia by the British on the infamous Dunera in 1941. According to Philip Zajac, President of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria, the Adass Israel congregation is apolitical with regards to the State of Israel. When the sounding electoral boundaries were reviewed, one of the discussion papers presented stated that "Adass Israel’s political interests differ considerably in many ways" compared to neighbouring Jewish communities in Melbourne, and "Of particular note is the non-Zionist nature of the Adass Israel community; indeed it has ties to groups that are openly anti-Zionist". The Synagogue was previously vandalised in 1989, and it was severely damaged in an arson attack on 1 January 1995. In that case, police did not find any evidence that antisemitism or racism motivated the crime. The threat level had previously been at probable level since shortly after November 2015's Paris terror attacks until 2022 when it was lowered to possible. On 11 October 2023, in Melbourne, a synagogue received a bomb threat. On 23 November 2023, in Western Australia, an individual threw two glasses of red paint at a synagogue. == Attack ==

In the early hours of 6 December 2024, two masked men entered the Adass Israel Synagogue of Melbourne in Ripponlea. The two perpetrators set the accelerant alight just before 4:10 am and fled the scene in a stolen Volkswagen Golf. The fire spread quickly causing extensive damage to the inside of the synagogue and collapsing part of the roof. Dozens of emergency service crews, including 65 firefighters, were called to Synagogue shortly after the blaze first started. Firefighters spent more than an hour containing the blaze. A crime scene was established after the fire had been put out and members of the synagogue where allowed to enter in the afternoon of 6 December 2024 to retrieve the Torah scrolls, holy books, tallits, tefillin, other artefacts and some personal items. == Aftermath ==

On 9 December, in the wake of the synagogue attack, the AFP established Taskforce Avalite to investigate antisemitism in Australia. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) also announced it would be assisting the taskforce in its investigation. The Sydney Jewish community organised a demonstration on 15 December 2024, at Martin Place, protesting the Australian government's inadequate response to antisemitism. On 17 December 2024, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan announced new measures impacting public protests as part of an effort to prevent antisemitic behaviour. The proposed laws would establish safe access in close proximity to places of worship and prohibit disturbances of religious gatherings. There are ongoing investigations on some of the reported antisemitic attacks. Anthony Albanese suggested that the attacks may have involved actors without ideological commitment being funded externally. Arrests On 16 July 2025, the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCCT) arrested and charged a 20-year-old man in Williamstown over the theft of the blue Volkswagen Golf used in the arson attack. The Golf had previously been used in another arson attack at the Lux nightclub in South Yarra in November 2024 and an arson and shooting in Bundoora on the same night as the synagogue attack. Two men had been arrested previously in relation to the Lux nightclub fire on 15 May 2025, with a police spokesperson indicating after the arrest, that the two men were not directly involved in the synagogue attack and that the arson attack at Lux nightclub was not a political attack. A similar conspiratorial statement blaming a Jewish conspiracy for the attack was made by Wissam Haddad (also known as Abu Ousayd), an Islamic preacher in Sydney who previously came under public scrutiny for antisemitic remarks. The preacher's statement was criticised by the New South Wales Premier, Chris Minns. Continued targeting of Australian synagogues The targeting of Australian synagogues continued after the Melbourne incident with the Southern Sydney Synagogue in Allawah vandalised on 10 January 2025. The Southern Sydney Synagogue was previously firebombed in 1991. On 11 January 2025, the Newtown Synagogue in Sydney's Inner West was vandalised, with the arsonists also attempting to set the synagogue on fire. On 4 July 2025, an unknown perpetrator attempted to set East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation on fire by pouring a flammable liquid on the entrance and igniting it. Iranian involvement On 26 August 2025, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that ASIO determined Iran was allegedly involved in planning the attack. As a result, Iranian ambassador to Australia Ahmad Sadeghi was expelled from the country and Australia suspended operations of its embassy in Tehran. Australia also plans to list the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation. == Reactions ==

Australia Australian Federal Government Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on a radio interview on 6 December that he was "outraged" at the attack. He revealed that he had been briefed that same day by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) commissioner, and that the attack was deliberate and CCTV footage had shown the two assailants spread an accelerant throughout the building with a broom before setting it alight. Albanese also spoke to the government's special envoy for antisemitism, Jillian Segal, on 6 December. On 8 December, Albanese stated the incident was "quite clearly" an act of terrorism, and announced A$32.5 million in federal funding for security upgrades to Jewish schools and community centres. Other governmental bodies to condemn the incident included the Australian Human Rights Commission, which stated: "Antisemitism is abhorrent. It is a form of racism which has no place in Australia. This attack is the latest incident in a trend of significant rises in antisemitism." In response to the government's condemnation of the attack and the establishment of the dedicated police taskforce, Jillian Segal, Australia's Special Envoy on Antisemitism, pointed to the lack in serious penalties applied to individuals arrested in related events, such as those flying prohibited flags, and that it has set a tone of permissiveness in Australian society. Victorian Government Premier of Victoria Jacinta Allan condemned the attack as an "evil antisemitic attack". On 6 December, at a press conference in front of the synagogue, Allan pledged A$100,000 from the state government to fund the rebuilding of the synagogue. While at the site, the premier was heckled by local Jewish residents. Allan returned unannounced to the site several days later where she was shown the portion of the site destroyed by the firebombing. Similarly, the incident was condemned by local elected officials. Liberal Party of Australia Federal Leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton, said the attack was abhorrent, and that it was to be expected due to what he sees as a lack of compassion for the Jewish people from the Albanese government. Dutton also stated that the funding announced by the federal government on 8 December should be allowed to be used to fund armed guards for Jewish schools and community centres. The Jewish Community Council of Victoria condemned the attack; JCCV CEO Naomi Levin stated: “We were absolutely shocked, but not surprised, to hear that a synagogue here in Melbourne had been attacked overnight. The Jewish community has been warning about an unacceptable rise in antisemitism for more than a year. We hoped it would never come to this, but today, our fears have been realised.” The Jewish Council of Australia issued a statement condemning the attack, stating, "This reprehensible act of violence is an attack not only on the synagogue but on Jewish communities more broadly." The Jewish Council also condemned efforts by a senior staffer from the Australian Greens to label the attack as a false flag, as the claim would only deepen antisemitic sentiment. The Australian Jewish Association released a statement in which they felt 'outraged' but not surprised due to their view that Australian Jews had been abandoned by the Albanese government. Separately, the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne condemned the attack, stating that "A peaceful place of worship has been violated—nothing can justify such violence. Antisemitism has no place in our society. We stand in prayerful solidarity with members of the Jewish community at this time." And the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC) condemned the attack, stating: “Such acts of hatred and violence must be met with a swift and firm response from law enforcement. We urge the authorities to thoroughly investigate this matter and ensure that those responsible are held accountable.” Nationally, the attack was condemned by the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA), stating: "It is for all of us to step up as peacemakers and commit to upholding the safety and harmony of our multi-cultural and multi-faith society in Australia." And the event was described in a statement by Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, who condemned an antisemitic attack in Sydney, stating: "The latest attack on the Jewish community in Sydney is egregious, cowardly and despicable. All people of good will, faith or none, will condemn this outrage. It follows the terrorist attack on the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne, and more than a year of increasing hostility and intimidation of the Australian Jewish community in multiple, grotesque ways." Others On 7 December, former Liberal MP Josh Frydenberg and former Labor senator Nova Peris called at a press conference for the federal government to declare the event a terrorist attack. Frydenberg said that Jewish Australians were now talking openly about leaving the country and that young Jews are forced to conceal their faith and ethnicity for fear of attack. Peris called the attack 'totally deplorable'. and the Human Rights Law Centre. Israel Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu criticised the Albanese government following the incident, linking the event to Australia's position on the Middle East. President Isaac Herzog said that he has spoken with Albanese about the attack, and had told Albanese that the recent antisemitic attacks required 'strong and firm action'. United Kingdom Six members of the UK Parliament sponsored a motion for the parliament to condemn the arson attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue and to acknowledge that trends of antisemitism have also unfolded in the UK. The motion calls on the UK government to address antisemitism both at home and abroad and to provide funding to secure synagogues and Jewish schools. == See also ==