New Zealander inside synagogue during attack fears escalation in 'violence'
Flammable liquid was poured over a door and set alight on Friday. About 20 people were in the East Melbourne Synagogue at the time of the attack.
Counter terrorism police have arrested a 34-year-old man.
Also in Melbourne, on the same night, about 20 masked protesters harassed diners at an Israeli-owned restaurant. Three cars were also set on fire outside a Melbourne business.
One of those inside the Melbourne synagogue on Friday evening was New Zealander Murray Meltzer.
He said it was a "very tranquil" service before the attack.
"Congregants meet there every week on a Friday around sunset for the Shabbat services, and, regularly a handful of us meet for dinner afterwards - that's what was happening on Friday night."
Shortly before 8pm, soon after dinner began, the synagogue's bell began ringing "repeatedly, which is unusual".
"One of the children, around age 13, was playing at the front of the building," Meltzer said.
They glanced at the CCTV monitor - which Meltzer called an "unfortunate sign of the times [with] concern about rising anti-Semitism" - and ran towards the back.
"By then there was smoke starting to creep under the front entrance and find its way into the central synagogue sanctuary area, and as a result of that, we obviously ran to the front initially to try and put out the fire. Everyone else was at the back of the building.
"And by then we had a couple of passers-by that had spotted the flames developing at the front of the building called the fire brigade, which is located fairly close by, so fortunately, the fire brigade was there very quickly, thank goodness."
The gravity of what had happened - not just at the synagogue, but elsewhere - "hit home the next day" when people showed up for the Saturday morning service and there was a "large press crowd there".
There has been a rise in the number of anti-Jewish and Islamophobic incidents in Australia since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war in 2023.
In December last year, another synagogue in Melbourne was set alight.
Australia in early 2024 banned Nazi salutes and the public display of symbols associated with designated terror groups like Islamic State and Hamas. Last week it cancelled American rapper Kanye West's visa after he released a song 'Heil Hitler', praising the genocidal Nazi Party leader.
A synagogue in Sydney earlier this year was graffitied with swastikas, while in December anti-Islamic graffiti appeared in the city's west.
Meltzer said whoever lit the latest fire in Melbourne would have known there were people inside as all the lights were on.
"It's shifted the sort of activity we've seen in recent times from, from just a bit of hate speech and people's right to protest and stand up and say what their views are - just sort of, kind of shifted it quite dramatically. It's been left to fester and develop and I guess the speech has moved from just a bit of hate speech into violence.
"And that's a real, that's a real, that's a real concern for us as a community." 'Attack on Australia'
Meltzer praised politicians from both sides of the Australian political divide for condemning the incidents.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said he viewed the incidents with "utmost gravity", and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said they "have no place in our country".
"Australians have every right to be able to conduct their faith, to engage with each other in peace and harmony. That is the Australia that we cherish."
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, speaking from the scene on Sunday, called it an "attack on Australia".
"There's been some reporting that no one was physically injured - that doesn't mean no one was harmed. The community here was harmed. The Jewish community in Australia was harmed, and we were harmed as a nation."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
2 hours ago
- Scoop
NACI Unreservedly Rejects The Baseless Smears & Insinuations Peddled Against A Trusted Friend To The African Continent
Dutch and German intelligence agencies came out on Friday, 4th July, 2025 with a new narrative, assuming that Russia is now using chemical weapons in the war with Ukraine. They went further to call for punitive action be taken to further punish Russia, and for continued NATO weaponry supply and support for Ukraine's aggression on Russia's sovereignty and territorial integrity. This claimed which was pushed by the Dutch military and general intelligence services, MIVD and AIVD, along with Germany's foreign intelligence service BND, accused Russia of violating the Chemical Weapons Convention. This allegation has been rejected by Russia as just another baseless piece of propaganda intended to embarrass the competent authorities in Moscow. Normally it is not the policy of the New African Charter International (NACI) to join arguments with former colonial masters on issues bordering the rules of engagement in war time. We cannot argue either with the German or Dutch security on the situation in Ukraine, because they have already taken sides to execute the unipolar world order, whereby countries like Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, South Africa and more are top on the list for destabilization. They have the money, the technology and the mainstream media, to make the public believe they are always on the side of the truth, and any other opinion is considered an affront to western values. The current report against a trusted and progressive friend, and strategic partner to Africa, i.e. Russia, and especially when such report focuses on baseless smears and insinuations, we see it our duty to join the millions of voices around the world to defend truth against unjust attacks. Having read the allegation peddled against Russia, with its ill-intentioned goal, we therefore state as follows: The New African Charter International (NACI) notes with regret the unstopped race-filled propaganda and ethnic purification war that is being initiated and fought against Russia and Russian-speaking peoples. NACI vehemently rejects the malicious narrative in relation to the use of chemical weapons in the Ukraine war, which has been peddled by politically-motivated, war-profiteers and anti-Russian agents whose so-called concerned for human rights depends on spreading misinformation, disinformation and misleading narrative of hatreds. Such irresponsible and polarizing assumptions by German and Dutch security are meant to promote war, and against peace and reconciliation. NACI wishes to make it pellucid that Russia had reported in 2024 that hostile European countries supplied ban weapons to Ukraine, which are now used against Russian soldiers in the frontlines. NACI wishes to make it clear that the German and Dutch security are only concern with the clinical execution of the plan to destabilise Russia, and not to promote peace, reconciliation, understanding, development and progress. That one should speculate that Russia is using chemical weapons in Ukraine is outrageous and completely baseless. The allegations echo similar past claims, and this is not the first time Russia's military has faced such accusations that were given prominent headlines in the mainstream media. These claims have previously been fully rebutted by Moscow in detailed published technical reports, press statements, as well as in submissions made to the United Nations Security Council in New York. Such claims amount only to pure speculation, apparently designed as a last ditch attempt at milking the last millions stashed away from the European tax papers' money. This latest allegation came at a time when Ukraine was making deals with its European masters and US defence companies to step up the production of drones that are needed to destabilize the Russian federation. Denmark has agreed to provide its territory as a pad to produce Ukrainian weapons and drones on the Scandinavian soil. Ukraine has also been promised to receive hundreds of thousands of additional drones this year, with many more in the following year, to boast its aggression against Russia. Needless to remind politicians in Germany about their attempt to influence the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICF) for the case of genocide committed in Gaza, brought before it by South Africa, against Israel. Is it not hypocrisy and double standards at the highest international level for European politicians to unabashedly attacked South Africa for seeking justice at the ICJ, for the people of Palestine, and now want the world to bid their tailored narratives against Russia? For the sake of peace, we urge European leaders and the US government to refrain from making comments or statements which promote hatred, misinformation and misguided beliefs and to cease meddling in the internal matters of Russia through distorted facts. We urge caution at a time when the world is seeking peace and not violence, progress and not retrogression, good governance and not political gangsterism. God bless Russia! Alimamy Bakarr Sankoh Co-founder and President
Scoop
4 hours ago
- Scoop
Release Of Rapid Review Into Police Information Security Controls
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers: A rapid review of Police IT systems and devices has found while Police have a wide range of security measures in place, there are opportunities to strengthen and tighten controls on their use. The review found Police has a range of modern security controls which protect Police information and systems from malicious activity. Most user activity is logged in line with good industry practice and there is clear guidance and expectations for staff around acceptable use. However, the review also identified several areas where improvement was needed. These include more monitoring of staff internet use and stronger filtering mechanisms to guard against inappropriate or harmful content being accessed or downloaded. It also recommended better oversight of all Police-owned devices, including those that sit outside the Police network for legitimate work purposes. Police is an extremely complex workplace and different levels of security settings will always be required by some staff for lawful policing purposes. Some staff also require devices that operate outside the central Police system. However, the review has made it very clear the current settings are not robust enough and urgent attention is required. The report includes recommendations to strengthen the settings. I have made two decisions immediately: - Re-introducing audits of data and internet usage on police devices, a process that was halted 4-5 years ago. These will recommence as soon as possible. - Initiating an assessment of Police-owned standalone devices which operate outside the Police network. While there are legitimate work reasons for such devices, clarity is needed around the oversight of them. I have requested a remediation plan to consider the review's recommendations and address key issues. I have asked this be done quickly and expect to make further decisions within the month. We have shared the review with other relevant agencies. The NZ Police Rapid Review Summary Report is attached.
Otago Daily Times
6 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
New Zealander inside synagogue during attack fears escalation in 'violence'
A New Zealander inside a Melbourne synagogue subject to an alleged arson attack on Friday says it is a worrying escalation from "hate speech into violence". Flammable liquid was poured over a door and set alight on Friday. About 20 people were in the East Melbourne Synagogue at the time of the attack. Counter terrorism police have arrested a 34-year-old man. Also in Melbourne, on the same night, about 20 masked protesters harassed diners at an Israeli-owned restaurant. Three cars were also set on fire outside a Melbourne business. One of those inside the Melbourne synagogue on Friday evening was New Zealander Murray Meltzer. He said it was a "very tranquil" service before the attack. "Congregants meet there every week on a Friday around sunset for the Shabbat services, and, regularly a handful of us meet for dinner afterwards - that's what was happening on Friday night." Shortly before 8pm, soon after dinner began, the synagogue's bell began ringing "repeatedly, which is unusual". "One of the children, around age 13, was playing at the front of the building," Meltzer said. They glanced at the CCTV monitor - which Meltzer called an "unfortunate sign of the times [with] concern about rising anti-Semitism" - and ran towards the back. "By then there was smoke starting to creep under the front entrance and find its way into the central synagogue sanctuary area, and as a result of that, we obviously ran to the front initially to try and put out the fire. Everyone else was at the back of the building. "And by then we had a couple of passers-by that had spotted the flames developing at the front of the building called the fire brigade, which is located fairly close by, so fortunately, the fire brigade was there very quickly, thank goodness." The gravity of what had happened - not just at the synagogue, but elsewhere - "hit home the next day" when people showed up for the Saturday morning service and there was a "large press crowd there". There has been a rise in the number of anti-Jewish and Islamophobic incidents in Australia since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war in 2023. In December last year, another synagogue in Melbourne was set alight. Australia in early 2024 banned Nazi salutes and the public display of symbols associated with designated terror groups like Islamic State and Hamas. Last week it cancelled American rapper Kanye West's visa after he released a song 'Heil Hitler', praising the genocidal Nazi Party leader. A synagogue in Sydney earlier this year was graffitied with swastikas, while in December anti-Islamic graffiti appeared in the city's west. Meltzer said whoever lit the latest fire in Melbourne would have known there were people inside as all the lights were on. "It's shifted the sort of activity we've seen in recent times from, from just a bit of hate speech and people's right to protest and stand up and say what their views are - just sort of, kind of shifted it quite dramatically. It's been left to fester and develop and I guess the speech has moved from just a bit of hate speech into violence. "And that's a real, that's a real, that's a real concern for us as a community." 'Attack on Australia' Meltzer praised politicians from both sides of the Australian political divide for condemning the incidents. The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said he viewed the incidents with "utmost gravity", and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said they "have no place in our country". "Australians have every right to be able to conduct their faith, to engage with each other in peace and harmony. That is the Australia that we cherish." Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, speaking from the scene on Sunday, called it an "attack on Australia". "There's been some reporting that no one was physically injured - that doesn't mean no one was harmed. The community here was harmed. The Jewish community in Australia was harmed, and we were harmed as a nation."
