Anthony Albanese jeered and Peter Dutton cheered at Jewish vigils
The Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader received two very different receptions at vigils marking the first anniversary of the October 7 massacre on Monday.
While Anthony Albanese was booed by Illuminate October attendees in Melbourne, Peter Dutton was cheered by a 12,000-strong crowd at a vigil in Sydney.
As Mr. Albanese walked through the crowd alongside Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann, some attendees shouted “shame” at him. The Guardian reported.
Others made their displeasure known by holding up signs that stood out in the crowd.
“Shame on Albo,” it said.
‘Only photo opportunity! No real support for the Jewish community.’
About 6,000 visitors attended the Illuminate October event in Moorabbin in Melbourne’s south-east.
Mr Albanese did not speak at the event, but did join attendees in a procession of hand-painted lanterns to commemorate the 1,200 people killed by terrorists a year ago, and the 251 hostages taken – 97 of whom are still missing.
Meanwhile, in Sydney, Mr Dutton received a thunderous reception as he addressed a crowd of 12,000 people at a commemoration organized by the Zionist Council of NSW and the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies in Sydney’s east.
Anthony Albanese (pictured center) was jeered in Melbourne at a commemoration of the first anniversary of the October 7 massacre in Israel
Some people held signs reading “Shame on you Albo” (pictured) and accused him of not supporting Israel
He was loudly cheered when he denounced the anti-Semitism that the Jewish people have suffered since the “horror and heartbreak” of October 7, 2023.
“That day of depravity, the greatest loss of Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust, exposed an anti-Semitic rot that plagues Western democracies,” he said.
Mr Dutton said the past year was the “most shocking period for our country in my lifetime”.
He said there was a “moral fog” and a “vacuum of leadership” in Australia, and spoke of the anti-Semitic chants heard on the steps of the Sydney Opera House on October 9 last year.
“In that vacuum, intolerable incidents have been tolerated and each intolerable incident has encouraged the next.
“The last twelve months have been one of the most difficult times for Jewish Australians in our country’s history. So in the interest of moral clarity, let me be clear: Israel has every right to defend its territory,” Mr Dutton said.
In Melbourne, Zionism Victoria President Yossi Goldfarb was cheered and applauded when he accused the federal government of being “weak” on Israel’s defense.
He said Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen are “enemies of Israel” and a “pernicious threat” that must be defeated.
Peter Dutton addresses a crowd of 12,000 at a commemoration organized by the Zionist Council of NSW and the Jewish Board of Deputies of NSW
Mr Goldfarb said anti-Semitism in Australia had “simply spiraled out of control… threatening everything that makes our country unique and great.
“There is a permissiveness that has allowed anti-Semitism to continue to fester, a permissiveness that is encouraged by weak and ambiguous statements of our foreign policy,” he said.
“Our community believes they have weakened our social cohesion, leaving us feeling that the State of Israel has been abandoned as a natural ally of the Australian people.”
Other dignitaries attending the vigil in Melbourne included Attorney General Mark Dreyfus, Jewish MP Josh Burns, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan and her deputy Ben Carroll.
More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the deadly conflict that followed the October 7 attacks on Israel.