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"A witness recalled the Bondi Beach shooting as Australia's Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion began its first block of public hearings in Sydney on Monday. "The frequency, the visibility, and the intensity of these anti-Semitic attacks have fundamentally changed in the last few years. And the fact that this is being felt by the youngest and the most vulnerable, our children, is frankly devastating. It's not theoretical," Stefanie Schwartz, a witness, stated. "My husband and my five-year-old were at the Bondi massacre, and I continue to see those psychological and emotional effects," she added. The hearings come amid rising reported anti-Semitic incidents in Australia and the 2025 Bondi Beach mass shooting. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) has documented a historic and sustained surge in anti-Semitism, reporting a total of 1,654 incidents for the 2024–2025 period. "We can have all the political disagreements in the world, and we should be able to express them reasonably. But hateful rhetoric has to stop. Demonisation has to stop. Pandering to movements that want to kill every Jew everywhere has to stop," Rabbi Dr Benjamin Elton said. "Let no one deny what globalised intifada means. It means Jewish blood on the sands of Bondi Beach," he added, saying that "anti-Semitism in Australia has run riot." While this represents a slight numerical dip from the previous year's record of 2,062 incidents, it confirms that threats remain at levels nearly five times higher than the pre-2023 average. This comes after the J7 Annual Report on Antisemitism recorded a 317% increase in anti-Semitic activity initially recorded in the year immediately following the October 2023 attacks in Israel and the outbreak of the Gaza war. The proceedings mark the start of formal evidence gathering, with further sessions expected in the coming weeks as the commission builds its findings. The final report is expected to be delivered in December 2026. On 14 December 2025, an Islamic State (IS)-inspired antisemitic attack took place in the Archer Park area of Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, targeting a Hanukkah celebration, killing 15 people. "
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