Increased garda vigilance for the Irish Jewish community 'prudent and appropriate' in wake of Bondi terror

Chief Rabbi of Ireland Yoni Wieder. Picture: Taryn Barling

Ireland’s chief rabbi has said “no one can guarantee that things will not turn violent” in Ireland following Sunday's attack on Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

Yoni Wieder has urged the Jewish community not to “retreat in fear”, but instead come together after 16 people, including an alleged gunman, were killed and dozens were injured in the shooting. 

It is “prudent and appropriate” for gardaí to increase patrols at centres and events for the Irish Jewish community after the Bondi Beach attack, Tánaiste Simon Harris has said.

Two gunmen opened fire on more than 1,000 people attending a Jewish festival in the Archer Park area of Australia’s most famous beach at 6.47pm local time on Sunday.

Mr Wieder said the people responsible for the attack "and those who cheer them on" want Jewish people "to live in fear in Sydney and far beyond it".

“Our response is unequivocal. We are strong, we are resilient, and we will continue to express our Jewish identities openly and proudly.” 

Mr Wieder met with Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly on Sunday after gardaí announced a ramping-up of patrols at centres and events for the Irish Jewish community following the Bondi attack.

He said the meeting was "about intelligence" and identifying potential threats as early as possible. He said it was important anyone found to have issued threats or incited violence was held to account.

"We are so appreciative of the gardaí for their reassurances yesterday," he said, highlighting the importance of "enhanced security around Jewish institutions and our communal events".

He said while the additional support given to them over the past two years was welcomed, “this cannot be addressed by policing alone”.

“We must not get into the cycle of building ever higher fences and deploying ever more guards. That is not the solution. There is a deep and ugly hatred against Jewish people festering in parts of the Western world, and regrettably, within parts of Irish society as well. Hatred has to be identified and confronted and struck out.” 

According to Mr Wieder, there are “serious concerns” for Jewish people in Ireland, as there has been a “sharp rise in incidents” of hatred towards people from their community.

He told RTÉ's Morning Ireland: “For many months, we've had targeted graffiti in Dublin, explicitly calling to kill Jews. So against that background, and coupled with the fatal attack that we saw first in Manchester on Yom Kippur and now in Sydney on Hanukkah, people are starting to recognise the hard truth that no one can guarantee that things will not turn violent here too.”

Mr Wieder said several Jewish children had told him they had been bullied because of their identity.

“They now avoid speaking about their identity in front of their classmates. Jewish university students report similar experiences. Online antisemitism from Irish users is particularly vicious,” he said.

The Tánaiste said the Bondi event was a “vile, disgusting terrorist attack” targeting the Jewish community.

“Our hearts go out to all of those impacted, but also to the Jewish community more broadly, here in Ireland and indeed around the world.” 

The Tánaiste said he is not aware of any Irish citizens caught up in the attack.

On gardaí increasing their patrols, Mr Harris said it is a “statement of fact” to say there is an increase in antisemitism across the world, including in Ireland.

“I certainly met with members of the Jewish community recently, including young children attending a school, and I was very struck by the antisemitism that they face in their daily lives. Ireland must and will do more to tackle the scourge of antisemitism,” Mr Harris said.

“The gardaí will always adopt a zero tolerance approach in relation to this, and I think it’s prudent and appropriate that the gardaí increase their patrols in the aftermath of what’s happened and against the international backdrop as well.”

Foreign affairs minister Helen McEntee condemned the attack in Bondi Beach, describing it as a “vile and antisemitic attack on innocent civilians”.

“I want to offer my sincerest condolences to all of the families who have been impacted and to the entire Jewish community,” Ms McEntee said.

“I’m very conscious of the impact this will have on so many members of the community, not least at home in Ireland.

“I want to say in the strongest words possible, we utterly condemn what was a vile and antisemitic attack and we must do everything that we can to push back on this type of antisemitism and hatred and violence across the world.”