Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is confronting a profound and damaging rupture in relations with Australia's Jewish community, according to a scathing editorial analysis. The core issue stems from the government's perceived equivocation and failure to adequately address community concerns following the Hamas attacks of October 7 and the subsequent war in Gaza.
A Crisis of Confidence and Communication
The editorial argues that trust has been shattered, not by a single misstep, but by a pattern of behaviour from the Prime Minister and his government. Central to this is the handling of a dire warning from the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ). In a confidential letter dated October 31, the ECAJ's co-CEOs, Alex Ryvchin and Peter Wertheim, explicitly alerted the government to an alarming surge in antisemitism, describing it as the worst experienced in a generation.
Despite the urgency of this warning, the Prime Minister's public response has been criticised as weak and insufficient. The community's sense of abandonment was compounded when, weeks later, Mr. Albanese claimed in a radio interview that he had not been formally briefed on the specific rise in antisemitic incidents. This statement was directly contradicted by the existence of the October 31 letter, creating a perception of either dismissiveness or a troubling disconnect within his office.
The Stubborn Refusal to Label Hamas as a Terrorist Organisation
Another major point of contention is the government's ongoing refusal to consistently and unequivocally label Hamas as a terrorist organisation in its entirety. While Australia lists Hamas's military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, as a terrorist entity, it does not extend this designation to the group's political wing.
This technical distinction is viewed by Jewish leaders as a morally and strategically flawed position. They argue it ignores the integrated nature of Hamas and provides a form of legitimacy to an organisation whose founding charter explicitly calls for the destruction of Israel and which perpetrated the atrocities of October 7. The editorial frames the PM's adherence to this policy as "obstinate" and a key reason for the erosion of trust.
Broken Promises and the Path Forward
The fallout extends beyond rhetoric. The government has faced criticism for slow-walking the implementation of its own election promise to appoint an envoy to combat antisemitism. Furthermore, the community feels its legitimate fears and the specific nature of the hate it is facing are being downplayed or subsumed into a broader, less specific narrative about "social cohesion."
The consequence is a community that feels isolated and unprotected at a time of genuine crisis. The editorial concludes that Prime Minister Albanese has lost the trust of a significant portion of the Australian Jewish community. Rebuilding this trust, it suggests, will require more than words; it demands concrete actions, a clearer moral stance against terrorism and antisemitism, and a demonstration that the government is listening to and acting on the community's specific security and social concerns.
The situation presents a critical test of leadership, challenging the PM to bridge a growing divide and provide the unequivocal support that a community under threat believes it has been promised but has not yet received.
