I rise today, with an aching heart. 

On December 14, our nation was shaken by the horrific terror attack in Bondi,  

where 15 innocent people lost their lives.  

Most were members of our Jewish community.  

They were targeted not for anything they had done, but for who they were, for the faith they carried in their hearts, for the identity passed down through generations. 

Today, we honour their memory. 

I honour the lives stolen too soon, the families forever changed, and the communities left to grieve an unimaginable loss.  

• I extend my deepest condolences to the loved ones of those who were killed, 

• to those who were injured, and 

• to all who continue to carry the trauma of that day – five weeks ago. 

Bradfield is home to one of the largest Jewish communities in New South Wales. 

It includes four synagogues, Masada College, and families whose roots in Australia stretch back generations. It is a community that contributes profoundly to our civic, cultural, and moral life.  

 
On the first Friday after December 14, I was invited to attend a service at one of the Synagogues in Bradfield.  

It was the words of its Rabbi that moved me, beyond words. 

The Rabbi spoke of one of their community: a boy – who on the following morning, the Sabbath, was to  

• complete his months of study by reading from the Torah, leading prayers and  

• delivering his speech 

• culminating in his Bar Mitzvah - his transition to religious manhood.   

What is already a very profound rite of passage for a young Jewish person, should have been pure joy.  

But this moment was tempered instead with yet another level of gravitas.  

The Rabbi spoke, among other things, of the symbolism of this young man. A young and proud Jew  

• the steward of traditions and culture 

• from generations before 

• to the generations to come.  

The Rabbi spoke in general terms about him being the embodiment of resilience and resolve,  

• needed more than ever in the wake of the hate crimes the Sunday before, not just for himself and his family, 

• but his whole community and the next generation of Jewish people in Australia.  

That is a profound responsibility and it cannot sit with him alone — it calls on the rest of us, as a community, to stand alongside him, to protect what he carries, and to ensure that resilience is shared. 

As a lifelong Australian, I am deeply saddened that a country known for tolerance and fairness is now wrestling with rising division and hatred. 

This attack was an act of terror. It sought to use violence to frighten and divide.  

Jewish Australians are our citizens, neighbours and contributors to our shared national life. 

Condolence alone is not enough. Grief must be matched with resolve. 

Tomorrow this Parliament will consider laws aimed at combating antisemitism and hate more broadly. As we do, we must remember the faces, the names, and the lives behind this discussion.  

Matilda 

Rabbi Eli Schlanger 

Boris Tetleroyd 

Boris and Sofia Gurman 

Reuven Morrison 

Edith Brutman 

Marika Pogany 

Rabbi Yaakov Levitan 

Peter Meagher 

Tibor Weitzen 

Alexander Kleytman 

Dan Elkayam 

Tania Tretiak 

Adam Smyth 

We must legislate not out of fear or politics, but out of moral responsibility  
— to ensure that no community in Australia feels unsafe because of their faith or identity.  

Today, we stand in solidarity with the Jewish community of Bradfield, of New South Wales, and of Australia. We stand against hatred, against violence, and against the slow erosion of the tolerance that defines when we are at our best.  
 
May the memories of those lost on December 14 be a blessing.  
May their families find comfort in the love that surrounds them.  
 
And may this Parliament honour them not only with words, but with action worthy of their memory.