The Bondi Shooting: How Jew-Hatred Became Normalized in the West
- Hananya Naftali
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
What does it say about a society when Jews lighting candles on the first night of Hanukkah are gunned down at a public celebration?
At least 11 Jews were murdered while lighting Hanukkah candles on Bondi Beach. In Australia. Not in a war zone. Not in a conflict zone. In the middle of a public religious celebration, in a Western democracy, in 2025.
And what should have shaken the entire country to its core was quickly met with a familiar and nauseating silence. There were press releases. A few public figures offered their condolences. Then the news cycle moved on.
This wasn’t a lone wolf. This wasn’t a case of mistaken identity. This was a deliberate, targeted mass shooting at Jews for being Jews, and most of the world can’t bring itself to say that out loud.
It’s no longer just about antisemitism growing. It’s about antisemitism becoming acceptable. Permissible. In some circles, even fashionable. What happened in Bondi Beach is the result of a decade of that permissiveness. And now families are preparing funerals while much of the West pretends to be confused.
On Sunday, over 2,000 members of Sydney’s Jewish community gathered for a Hanukkah celebration organized by Chabad. It was supposed to be a moment of joy, of faith, of unity. The first candle had just been lit.
Then the gunfire started.
Two attackers, dressed in black, opened fire on the crowd. Elevent people were murdered, including Rabbi Eli Schlanger. At least 60 others were injured. Police responded immediately. One of the attackers was killed. Two suspects were arrested. The investigation is ongoing, but the message was immediate and unmistakable.
They came to kill Jews. That was the purpose. And they did.
Jew-Hatred Is No Longer Hidden
For years now, the world has tolerated open, disgusting antisemitism. In media. In schools. In protests. In politics. And every time someone said, “This is going too far,” they were told to sit down. Don’t overreact. It’s just politics. It’s just protest. It's "anti-Zionism," not antisemitism.
Jew-hatred has become fashionable, cloaked in activism, masked as morality. People chant for “intifada” in public squares and then act shocked when Jews are hunted in real life. They scream “From the river to the sea” and pretend they don’t know what it means.
Enough.
This is what happens when you normalize hate. When graffiti calling Jews colonizers gets painted on synagogues and no one is arrested. When Jewish schools need round-the-clock security. When politicians tiptoe around Jew-hatred but jump on every other form of bigotry.
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry recorded 1,654 antisemitic incidents this year alone, a massive increase, including arson, violent threats, school lockdowns, and attacks on Jewish institutions. And still, politicians hesitated to speak plainly. Media outlets softened the language. “Rising tensions,” they called it.
This Was an Attack on Australia
This was not just an attack on Jews. This was an attack on Australia itself. On every Australian who believes in freedom, safety, and religious liberty. You cannot allow people to be murdered for their faith and still pretend your country is safe, free, or moral.
If Jews are not safe in Sydney, then no one is.
This isn’t just about the victims. It’s about what kind of society you want to live in. One where people can celebrate their religion without fear? Or one where Jews have to hide, again, because the world “understands” the people who want them dead?
Let me remind you: Jews didn’t bring this on themselves. They didn’t provoke it. They were celebrating Hanukkah, a holiday about surviving oppression. The irony is brutal.
The Bible Told Us This Would Happen
“They hate me without cause” (Psalm 35:19).
It’s an ancient cry, but it rings loud today. Jews are hated not for what they do, but for what they are. And that hate needs no logic. It never has. It just needs space to grow. And Western countries, including Australia, have given it that space.
When you let hate march freely in your streets, don’t be surprised when it shows up with a gun.
It’s not enough to be sad. It’s not enough to hold a press conference. It’s not enough to light a candle and say the word “solidarity.”
Australia must act. Clearly. Immediately. Without excuses.
That means stronger laws. That means prosecuting hate crimes. That means banning known hate groups. That means pulling funding from organizations that incite violence. That means demanding better from universities, media, and political parties.
The Jewish community cannot do this alone. Nor should they have to.
The Jewish people have survived Pharaoh, Rome, the Inquisition, pogroms, the Holocaust, and the daily terror of the 20th and 21st centuries. We will survive Bondi Beach too.
But how about this time, the world doesn’t stand by?
Light is stronger than darkness. That’s the message of Hanukkah. But don’t forget, the Maccabees didn’t just pray. They fought. They reclaimed what was theirs.
And Jews today will do the same. With or without applause.
Australia, the ball is in your court. Stand up now. Or watch your society rot from the inside out.