Bondi Beach Terror: Former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg Unleashes Scathing Attack on Leaders for Failing to Protect Jewish Australians
- Former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has slammed Australia’s leaders for their “fundamental failure” to protect Jewish Australians in the lead-up to the deadly Bondi Beach attack.
- Frydenberg described the attack as “a tragedy of unimaginable proportions” and warned that “Australia will never be the same again”.
- He pointed to a pattern of escalating incidents targeting the Jewish community, including celebrations on the steps of the Opera House and riots in predominantly Jewish suburbs in Melbourne.
- Frydenberg issued a stark warning: “Our leaders need to step up, accept personal responsibility, and close this shameful chapter in Australia’s history.”
In a scathing attack, former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has condemned Australia’s leaders for their failure to protect Jewish Australians in the lead-up to the deadly Bondi Beach attack. Appearing on Sunrise, Frydenberg described his reaction to the news as “shock and horror and a deep sadness”, calling it “a tragedy of unimaginable proportions”.
Frydenberg pointed to a pattern of escalating incidents targeting the Jewish community since October 7, including celebrations on the steps of the Opera House following the Hamas attack, the burning of synagogues and daycare centres, and riots in predominantly Jewish suburbs in Melbourne. “While this has all happened, our leaders have been bystanders. They’ve just allowed these flames of hate to burn and to burn in a way in Australia that hasn’t been replicated in any other countries in the world,” he said.
Frydenberg was particularly critical of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s previous promises to Holocaust survivors. “I sat in the audience in November 2023 after Hamas’s attack and listened to the Prime Minister say to Holocaust survivors that he, he himself, would not allow anti-Semitism to get a foothold in this country,” he said. “Yet yesterday, a Holocaust survivor, a 12-year-old child, and maybe many, many other children have been killed. Who is going to accept responsibility for this?”
When asked what the government needed to do now, Frydenberg said words would “count for very little”. “Everything must be on the table. Everything must change. Nothing can be the same,” he said. “Our leaders need to step up, accept personal responsibility, and close this shameful chapter in Australia’s history.”
Frydenberg emphasised that while the Jewish community may have been targeted, the attack was “an attack on every Australian”. “Our values, our traditions, our social cohesion has been torn because our leaders, political and civil, have stood by and been bystanders,” he said.
In a separate statement, Frydenberg described the terror attack as “a tragedy of unimaginable proportions”. “Australia will never be the same,” he said. “Every Australian has been attacked by this evil and hateful act of violence. It was all too predictable and so many of us said so.”