Australia has just released its long-awaited national antisemitism report, and it comes as Israel prepares for the possibility of a sudden mass influx of global Jews fleeing rising hatred.
ILTV spoke with the leadership of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, also known as AIJAC, about what must come next. Jewish leaders say the threat facing diaspora communities has fundamentally changed since October 7. Australia, once considered one of the safest places for Jews, has seen violent antisemitic incidents rise sharply over the last year.
As Israel conducts national drills simulating thousands of new immigrants arriving daily from crisis zones around the world, the message from AIJAC is clear: Israel and the diaspora can no longer operate on parallel tracks. Their futures are directly intertwined, and the work of keeping Jewish communities safe must now be a shared global effort.
“There is a saying in the Talmud that all Jews are responsible for one another, and we talk about Israel as a Jewish state," said Arsen Ostrovsky, incoming head of AIJAC Sydney. “When Israel is strong, Jewish communities in the diaspora are strong, and it also works vice versa.”
He added: “When we stand together and empower each other, we are stronger together... The battle we are fighting is long term."
Ostrovsky said that this eighth front, the informational warfare and the campaign facing diaspora communities, "is a battle we will be fighting for a generation.”
“We need to be working with Jewish communities where antisemitism has skyrocketed, and providing them with the resources to be better advocates... Supporting Israel is ultimately in Australia’s best interest," he said.
And that growing sense of shared fate is something AIJAC says must now guide the relationship between Israel and diaspora communities.
UNITED FRONT
“Over the past two years, Australia, like many other diaspora countries, has suffered an extreme amount of antisemitism," added Joel Burnie, AIJAC executive manager. “Never before have diaspora Jewry and Israelis been so connected, where events that happen in Israel have a direct and immediate impact on Australia and on all diaspora Jews.”
He said: “My message is clear: we need to do more together… And work hand in hand, Israel and diaspora Jewry.”
At a moment when antisemitism is rising worldwide and Israel braces for potential mass aliyah, Jewish leaders here say the path forward is not isolation but unity. Their warning is simple: the safety of Jews everywhere will depend on the strength of Jews everywhere.