The Australian Federal Police is investigating whether elements outside the country are paying local criminals to commit antisemitic crimes in the country, the BBC reported on Tuesday. Suspicion is falling on Iran, which has attempted to murder Israelis and Jews around the world over the past year, and is the world's number one funder of terrorism.
Arson in Sydney
(Video: Social media)
In recent months, there has been a sharp spike in the number of antisemitic incidents in Australia. Among the incidents, a synagogue was set on fire in Melbourne and, in recent weeks, incidents against Jews have been occurring every few days in Sydney, the latest of which is the burning of a Jeiwsh children's daycare center, on which "F**k the Jews" was spray-painted.
"We believe criminals for hire may be behind some incidents, so part of our inquiries include — who is paying those criminals, where those people are, whether they are in Australia or offshore, and what their motivation is," said the AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who is under fire for his conduct around antisemitic crimes in which no perpetrators have not yet been arrested, has convened a cabinet meeting in response. The participants agreed to set up a national database to track antisemitic incidents. So far, a special task force was established in December to investigate such incidents, and has received more than 166 reports of antisemitic crimes.
“Some individuals have been paid to carry out some antisemitic acts in Australia,” confirmed the Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reese Kershaw. He added that cryptocurrency may have been involved and that identifying the digital currency may take time.
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The commissioner said police were also investigating whether young people have been committing these crimes and becoming radicalized due to online propaganda. Most of the recent incidents have occurred in Sydney and have involved antisemitic graffiti, arson and vandalism of buildings, including synagogues.
Australia has seen a sharp increase in antisemitism since the deadly terror attack by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023. In recent weeks, at least six antisemitic incidents have occurred in Sydney alone, in which Jewish property has been vandalized. New South Wales has set up a special task force to deal with these incidents, and 36 people have been charged with antisemitic offenses so far, but they appear to have nothing to do with the arson and spray-painting of anti-Jewish graffiti.