The incident, which occurred in Queens Park on Henry Street, has left the local Jewish community reeling. Notably, the car’s owner, Stuart Veron, is not Jewish.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the incident, saying “There is no tolerance for antisemitism in Australia, from my government, nor should there be tolerance from anyone else."
“Antisemitism is a scourge, and any event such as this, targeting people because of who they are, is not the Australian values that I hold dear, and the Australian values that are held dear by, overwhelmingly, Australians," he continued.
Get the Ynetnews app on your smartphone: Google Play: https://bit.ly/4eJ37pE | Apple App Store: https://bit.ly/3ZL7iNv
New South Wales Police reported that the vandalism likely took place between 7 a.m. Sunday and 5:45 a.m. Monday. Veron described the graffiti as "madness" and "disgusting," adding, "Whoever did this is a rat, there’s no place for this in our community or anywhere in Australia.”
Sharon Greenberg told the Australian Jewish News she discovered the graffiti on a car parked outside her Henry Street home during a morning walk with her daughter.
“We’d just reached the street, and suddenly my daughter stopped in her tracks—she completely froze—and said, ‘Look!’” Greenberg recalled. The pair immediately contacted the police.
“Seeing that graffiti was like a cricket bat to your head—that’s what it felt like,” she said.
David Ossip, president of the Jewish Board of Deputies in New South Wales, expressed his dismay in comments to local media, saying he was “appalled and saddened.”
“It is unacceptable that Jewish Australians and Australians of all backgrounds have had to wake up yet again and see messages of hate prominently displayed in their neighborhood,” he said. “It is intolerable that Australians are having to go to bed fearful that their cars or properties will be defaced overnight with antisemitic hate speech.”The incident has reignited calls for stronger measures to combat hate crimes and protect vulnerable communities across the country.