ABC star sparks controversy after question for Premier after anti-Semitic attack in Sydney
An ABC Radio presenter has raised eyebrows after questioning NSW Premier Chris Minns about whether the attacks in the city’s eastern suburbs on Wednesday morning were anti-Semitic.
It followed the words “Kill Israiel (sic)” painted on a house next to a burning car in Woollahra, a prominent Jewish suburb in Sydney’s east, on Wednesday morning.
Minns quickly described the incident as a “deplorable anti-Semitic attack” that “will be met with nothing less than the full force of the law.”
ABC Sydney Breakfast host Chris Taylor questioned the Prime Minister about his wording.
“What is your reasoning for labeling the attack as anti-Semitic and not anti-Israel?” How do you make a distinction?’
Minns responded: “I think at this point we have to willfully turn a blind eye to that sequence of events and suggest that it is anything other than an anti-Semitic attack.
“And I want to make it clear that if there was an attack on any other community group in NSW based on their religion or based on their nationality, I would say exactly the same thing.”
The host continued to press Minns on the issue.
“So if you call it anti-Semitic rather than just a political anti-Israel statement… would you say that anti-Semitism has reached an all-time high in your experience?”
ABC Sydney Breakfast host Chris Taylor (pictured) asked the Prime Minister how you “make that distinction” between an incident that is “anti-Israel” and “anti-Semitic”
An ABC Sydney stand-in has caused a stir after questioning NSW Premier Chris Minns (pictured) about his description of an incident as ‘anti-Semitic’ and not ‘anti-Israel’
Mr Minns replied: ‘Yes, I would.’
When questioned about Mr Taylor’s line of questioning, the ABC said he “referenced antisemitism twice” when he first covered the story earlier that morning.
“A few hours ago, another suspected anti-Semitic attack took place in the eastern suburbs,” Taylor told listeners.
“We’ll be monitoring this story throughout the morning and seeing if we can get any comment on what continues to be a rather ugly trend in this apparent rise in anti-Semitism.”
But former Victorian Liberal Party chairman Michael Kroger claimed the national broadcaster had a “shocking and shameful… anti-Israel bias”.
Mr Minns was quick to describe it as “anti-Semitic” after police found graffiti reading “kill Israel (sic)” next to a burning car in Woollahra, in Sydney’s east, on Wednesday morning.
Mr. Kroger said that opposing Israel and not the Jewish community is a “three-card trick that the far left uses to hide their anti-Semitism.”
“People should not let their protests fool them into not criticizing Jews,” he said Sky News Australia.
Police have launched an investigation into the incident and are calling on anyone with information to come forward
They believed the perpetrators were two people of slim build, aged between 15 and 20, wearing face coverings and dark clothing.