Opposition Leader Sussan Ley says attempted attack on East Melbourne Synagogue an act of 'hate'

Sky News AU

2 days ago

An attack on a Jewish synagogue has been condemned by Sussan Ley who declared the incident an act of "hate".
An unknown man is understood to have entered the grounds of the synagogue on Albert Street in East Melbourne about 8pm on Friday night.
The alleged offender poured a flammable liquid at the front entrance of the East Melbourne Synagogue, before allegedly setting it on fire and fleeing the scene on foot in a westerly direction.
About 20 people were inside the synagogue enjoying a Shabbat dinner when the incident happened, but they safely self-evacuated out the back of the building.
The Opposition Leader said the act was "horrifying".
'This is not protest,' she wrote on social media platform X. 'This is hate. And it has no place in Australia.'
Victorian Liberal MP David Southwick said the Jewish community 'deserves protection, not platitudes'.
'A second arson attack on a synagogue in Melbourne, this time on the Sabbath along with a Jewish restaurant in the CBD,' he said in a statement.
'The perpetrators and organisers must be found and brought to justice. My thoughts are with every members of the Jewish community affected by these vile attacks.'
'We cannot let these haters hijack our streets, our city, or our state. We must stand united against anti-Semitic violence.'
Former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg said Australia had to continue trying to stamp out antisemitism.
'When you firebomb a synagogue with people inside & attack a local restaurant because it's owned by Jews, it's NOT about Israel, it's NOT about protest, it's a hate crime,' Mr Frydenberg wrote on X.
'Violent anti-Semitism is a threat to us all & until it's called out for what it really is, it will continue!'
No injuries have been reported.
Firefighters attended the scene and put the blaze out, but it was fortunately contained to just the front door.
Victoria Police have confirmed the investigation is now with the detectives from the Counter Terrorism Security Investigation Unit.
The incident is not being treated as a terrorism incident, but the investigation will look at the "intent and ideology" of the person or persons responsible to determine if the incident is actually an act of terrorism, a police statement said.
Police have released an image of a man who detectives want to speak to in relation to the matter.
The man is described as being aged in his mid 30's, having a beard and long hair.
He was wearing a dark blue or black jumper, black pants and black beanie when pictured.
Detectives are also investigating potential links to two other overnight incidents, including a public order incident and an arson and criminal damage to a business.
Northwest Metro Region Acting Commander Zorka Dunston told media on Thursday afternoon it was "incredibly lucky" that no one was injured the incident.
"I'd like to make it very clear that we do recognise that these crimes are disgusting and abhorrent. But at this stage, we are not declaring this a terrorist incident," she said.
"... Whilst I acknowledge that the fire itself may be small in nature, we are taking this investigation incredibly seriously. And given there were 20 people inside the building at the time, the outcome could have been a lot more devastating.
"This was clearly a targeted fire and we will not accept any acts of antisemitism or hate-based crime."