Tony Burke: attack on a Melbourne synagogue an ‘attack on Australia’
Krishani Dhanji
Home affairs minister Tony Burke says the attack on a Melbourne synagogue is an “attack on Australia”.
Speaking to the media, this morning, Burke has repeated his comment that antisemitism has “no place” in Australia, and says the Jewish community and broader Australian community were “harmed” by the arson attack on Friday night.
“[This] is not simply an arson attack; what matters here is there is an attack on Australia, an attack on Australian values. And we are here today in solidarity to stand together with the community.
This government, including [former attorney-general] Mark Dreyfus in the last term of parliament, has taken the strongest actions Australia has ever taken in making hate symbols unlawful, in making calls for violence and hate speech [to] have serious criminal penalties. But the job of making sure we eliminate antisemitism belongs to every single one of us.
Burke welcomed the arrests that have taken place, and says he’s been briefed twice now by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police, and has spoken to the Victorian police commissioner and home affairs boss.
Burke also met with community leaders and the synagogue’s Rabbi Dovid Gutnick, this morning.
Key events
Tory Shepherd
Most significant Viking hoard ever found in UK or Ireland has more than one link to Adelaide
In AD900, marauding Vikings buried a hoard of treasure – jewellery, gold, silver and more – in Scotland. It wasn’t until 2014 that it was unearthed.
Metal detectorist Derek McLennan was prospecting in a ploughed field near Dumfries and Galloway when he came across the hoard, which turned out to be the most significant Viking-age collection ever found in the UK or Ireland.
It turns out, the very detector McLennan used (a waterproof, all-terrain CTX 3030, for the cognoscenti) was made by an Australian company based in Adelaide, Minelab.
The Galloway hoard this year made its international debut in Adelaide, in an exhibition still running at the SA Museum.
Krishani Dhanji
Burke has spoken to Israeli ambassador to Australia about the Melbourne synagogue attack
Home affairs minister Tony Burke says the Israeli ambassador to Australia called him on Saturday to thank him for coming to Melbourne immediately.
I had a good conversation yesterday with the Israeli ambassador. He had heard that I was coming today, and rang me to thank me, and he took it as a signal that the government was taking this very seriously.
Because it was Shabbat, my wife, Skye, and I, we hopped on a plane not knowing if we would be welcomed here, not knowing what the community would want … And that’s why I wanted to make sure that I was here in Melbourne, so that if the community decided that they wanted us to come, we were able to facilitate that immediately.
There were three attacks on Friday. Burke says authorities haven’t yet drawn links between them, but he says that it’s clear the attacks were linked to “bigotry”.
He would not say whether it was a “terrorist attack” on the synagogue and says that’s a call for Victorian police.
There’s a link in bigotry, there’s a link in a willingness to either call for violence, to chant violence, or to take violent actions. So they are very much linked in that way. But at this stage, the authorities are still investigating whether or not there is a more formal coordination [of the attacks].
Former attorney-general and senior Jewish MP Mark Dreyfus has joined Burke outside the synagogue, and says he’s “pleased” Burke visited the area so promptly, which he says shows the government is taking the issue seriously. Dreyfus says this should “never happen again”.
Tony Burke: attack on a Melbourne synagogue an ‘attack on Australia’
Krishani Dhanji
Home affairs minister Tony Burke says the attack on a Melbourne synagogue is an “attack on Australia”.
Speaking to the media, this morning, Burke has repeated his comment that antisemitism has “no place” in Australia, and says the Jewish community and broader Australian community were “harmed” by the arson attack on Friday night.
“[This] is not simply an arson attack; what matters here is there is an attack on Australia, an attack on Australian values. And we are here today in solidarity to stand together with the community.
This government, including [former attorney-general] Mark Dreyfus in the last term of parliament, has taken the strongest actions Australia has ever taken in making hate symbols unlawful, in making calls for violence and hate speech [to] have serious criminal penalties. But the job of making sure we eliminate antisemitism belongs to every single one of us.
Burke welcomed the arrests that have taken place, and says he’s been briefed twice now by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police, and has spoken to the Victorian police commissioner and home affairs boss.
Burke also met with community leaders and the synagogue’s Rabbi Dovid Gutnick, this morning.
Woman bitten by animal at Queensland zoo now in stable condition in hospital
After an incident we posted about earlier at Queensland’s Darling Downs Zoo this morning – where a woman was taken to hospital after being bitten by an animal – Queensland ambulance service has said:
Paramedics assessed a female in her 50s with a significant arm injury following an animal bite on Baines Road at 8.23am. Rescue helicopter transported the patient to the Princess Alexandra hospital in a stable condition.
Labor’s Tony Burke, Anne Aly: East Melbourne synagogue fire ‘disgusting and cowardly’
The Australian government’s Home affairs minister, Tony Burke, and multicultural affairs minister, Dr Anne Aly, have released a joint statement on the East Melbourne synagogue fire.
The statement said:
Last night’s arson attack on the East Melbourne Synagogue was disgusting and cowardly.
The fact it took place while people, including children, were having a Shabbat dinner inside, makes it all the more abhorrent.
Home affairs minister, Burke, said:
I condemn last night’s disgusting attack in the strongest possible terms. Australians have a right to feel safe and protected from violence and bigotry.
Multicultural affairs minister, Aly, said:
All Australians have a right to safety. Acts of antisemitism violate that right and should face the full force of the law.
Qld police warn Bakers Bend residents to leave because of chemical fire, south of Charleville
An exclusion zone has been established at Bakers Bend, 20km south of Charleville in Queensland, after emergency services were called to the Mitchell Highway at about 6.30am because of reports that two chemical trailers were on fire.
People are advised to avoid the area and residents within the exclusion zone are advised to leave immediately.
Queensland Police have made an emergency declaration under the Public Safety Preservation Act, established to manage emergencies that pose a significant risk to public safety.
An exclusion zone established at 8.59am encompasses a large section of the Mitchell Highway near the Angellala creek bridge.
Woman hospitalised after animal attack at Qld’s Darling Downs Zoo
A woman has been taken to hospital, after being bitten by an animal believed to be a big cat, at a Queensland zoo, according to ABC news.
Emergency services were called to the Darling Downs Zoo this morning, and the woman was taken to Brisbane’s Princess Alexandra hospital in a stable condition, the report said.
Darling Downs Zoo posted on social media:
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the zoo will be closed all day today.
Netanyahu says Australian government must ‘take all action’ to prevent more antisemitic attacks
Daisy Dumas
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu says an antisemitic attack on a Melbourne synagogue is “reprehensible” and demands Anthony Albanese “take all action” to end hate crimes.
Victoria police allege a 34-year-old man entered the grounds of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation on Albert Street at about 8pm on Friday and poured a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and set it on fire.
Two other incidents, including an arrest after an incident between protesters and police at a Melbourne CBD restaurant, also took place on Friday night.
“I view with utmost gravity the antisemitic attacks that occurred last night in Melbourne, which included attempted arson of a synagogue in the city and a violent assault against an Israeli restaurant by pro-Palestinian rioters”, Netanyahu said via series of posts on X overnight.
“The reprehensible antisemitic attacks, with calls of ‘Death to the IDF’ and an attempt to attack a place of worship, are severe hate crimes that must be uprooted.
“The State of Israel will continue to stand alongside the Australian Jewish community, and we demand that the Australian government take all action to deal with the rioters to the fullest extent of the law and prevent similar attacks in the future.”
Read more here:
Benita Kolovos
More on Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel due to open in late 2025
Described as the most significant overhaul of the city’s transport network since the City Loop opened in the 1980s, the tunnel has been taking shape beneath the city for the past eight years – with the cost ballooning to $14bn.
Guardian Australia’s Victoria state correspondent, Benita Kolovos, gets a look at the city’s newest train stations.
Benita Kolovos
Here’s how Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel will transform the city and commuting
For nearly a decade, deep beneath Melbourne, tunnel boring machines and construction crews have been quietly reshaping the city with the creation of the Metro Tunnel.
Three new underground stations have already been handed over to Metro Trains, with two more to follow soon. By year’s end, a new 9km twin rail tunnel – billed as the biggest overhaul of Melbourne’s transport network since the City Loop opened in the 1980s – will open.
Krishani Dhanji
Melissa McIntosh: cultural change needed to support women in Liberal party before quotas
Talk of quotas “oversimplifies” the issue of a lack of women in the Liberal party, McIntosh said on ABC Insiders.
The Liberal party has opened a discussion about introducing quotas to increase the number of women in its ranks; it has only six Liberal women sitting in the House of Representatives.
McIntosh, the shadow minister for women, said the party needs broader cultural change to better support women, and suggested gender-balanced candidate pools (something that former UK conservative leader David Cameron introduced to his party) to increase the number of women in the preselection process.
I think every Liberal seat in the country is a marginal seat, right now. But my feelings around quotas and the talk in the media oversimplifies the issue, which is around the culture in the Liberal Party and how women are treated in the Liberal Party …
I had two attempts to take me out as a sitting member of parliament by blokes, very aggressively. So, until the culture is addressed, we could have all the quotas in the world, but it will be a revolving door of women.”
Shadow minister for women: Labor took too long to address childcare centre issues
Krishani Dhanji
The shadow minister for communication and women, Melissa McIntosh, said “something should have been done before now” to stop alleged abuses against babies and children in childcare centres.
On ABC Insiders, McIntosh said the government has taken too long to act, but acknowledged “review after review” had shown holes in the system that should have been addressed.
The opposition has said it will provide bipartisan support to the government, and McIntosh said her party will “back every reasonable measure”.
We had review after review, [and] a royal commission. We could go back in time to say that, of course, successive governments should have done more. Right now, we’ve had a serious case of [alleged] abuse of young children including babies, and the government, the Albanese government, has said itself that it has been too slow to act.
Why have we seen multiple accounts of child sex abuse take place before the government – [we’ve seen] politicians cry on television … We had reviews and parents calling for change, we had advocates calling for change. Something should have been done before now.”
NSW train travellers to ride for free for two days
More than one million train travellers in New South Wales will travel free for two days – on 31 July and 1 August – acknowledgment of extended disruptions due to industrial action.
The fare free period will apply to Sydney Trains, NSW TrainLink, Airport Link, and Sydney Metro services, with Opal gates and readers turned off during the fare-free period.
Free travel will not extend to buses, ferries and light rail, which will charge fares as normal.
The announcement followed workforce support for the rail Enterprise Agreement in a ballot that closed on Saturday. More than 11,700 employees participated in the vote, with 92% supporting the agreement, which will now be lodged with the Fair Work Commission for formal approval.
NSW Minister for Transport John Graham said:
We want to acknowledge [that] the period of protected industrial action took its toll on rail passengers but today we also look forward with optimism to a train system that will benefit from the entire workforce and management pulling in the same direction and the introduction of new technology to improve reliability and recovery times when disruption occurs.
Rain and showers for east and west coats and mild temperatures expected
Rain and showers are expected on the east and west coasts of Australia today, according to today’s forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology.
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Sydney – shower or two, Max 21C
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Melbourne – possible shower, Max 16C
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Brisbane – shower or two, Max 24C
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Perth – Rain, Max 21C
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Canberra – Showers, Max 16C
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Adelaide – Partly cloudy, Max 16C
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Darwin – Sunny, Max 31C
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Hobart – Mostly sunny, Max 14C
Krishani Dhanji
Frontbencher Kristy McBain: Labor will take ‘range of measures’ to address childcare abuse allegations
Labor frontbencher Kristy McBain was visibly emotional this morning, when asked about the abuse allegations at a childcare centre in Melbourne, and said the government will put in place a “range of measures” in response.
McBain was on Sky News a little earlier, and said the alleged crimes were “absolutely disgusting” and she was “really shocked” by the allegations.
McBain said all three of her children went to long daycare, and the eldest from five months old, with the centre becoming “like a second family”.
“Unfortunately, long daycare has to be part of that solution for a lot of people, because they need those extra dollars coming in.
As a parent, I was really shocked, and it does pull at your heartstrings, because you don’t want to have to have conversations like that with your kids or with your family members. And there’ll be a range of measures that will be put in place by our government. I think Jason Clare has said that he’ll bring legislation to the parliament in our first sitting.
Josh Taylor
Just one phone call and our personal data can be stolen from corporations
All it can take is one phone call. That’s what Qantas learned this week when the personal information of up to 6 million customers was stolen by cybercriminals after attackers targeted an offshore IT call centre, enabling them to access a third-party system.
It is the latest in a series of cyber-attacks of large companies in Australia involving the personal information of millions of Australians, after the attack on Optus, Medibank and, most recently, Australia’s superannuation sector.
NAIDOC names Daniel Hunt person of the year, Michael Long recognised for lifelong service
West Australian GP and dentist Dr Daniel Hunt was honoured as NAIDOC person of the year, at the annual NAIDOC Awards on Saturday night.
The awards recognise individual excellence and celebrate the strength, culture and leadership of First Nations people, and the 2025 edition marks the 50th anniversary of NAIDOC Week.
The Jaru and Indjibarndi man was honoured for his work in the health sector.
Former AFL player Michael Long was recognised with a lifetime achievement award for his service to his people and country in speaking for Indigenous rights and fighting against racism in sport.
2025 NATIONAL NAIDOC AWARD WINNERS
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Lifetime Achievement award: Michael Long
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Person of the Year award: Dr Daniel Hunt
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Female Elder award: Aunty Rosalie Kickett
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Male Elder award: Uncle Harry Phillip Hall
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Sportsperson award: Danielle Ponter
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Youth award: Anika Gosling
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Creative Talent award: Christine Anu
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Caring for Country and Culture award: Wadjemup Project Steering Group
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Education award: Prof Eddie Cubillo
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Innovation award: Blak Brews
– with AAP
Victoria police charge man over synagogue fire
Victoria police say a man has been charged after a suspicious fire at a synagogue in East Melbourne on Friday night.
The 34-year-old NSW man was arrested in Melbourne at about 8.15pm on Saturday. He was interviewed by detectives and charged with reckless conduct endangering life, reckless conduct endangering serious injury, criminal damage by fire, and possession of a controlled weapon.
It is alleged the man was seen walking through Parliament Gardens before entering the grounds of the synagogue on Albert Street on Friday at about 8pm. Victoria police said the man allegedly poured a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and set it on fire before fleeing the scene on foot.
There were about 20 people inside the synagogue at the time of the incident, taking part in Shabbat.
The man will appear before the Bail and Remand Court today.
Good Morning
Welcome to another Sunday Guardian live blog.
There’s news this morning that Victoria police have charged a 34-year-old NSW man after a suspicious fire at a synagogue in East Melbourne on Friday night. There were about 20 people inside the synagogue at the time who were taking part in Shabbat.
In New South Wales, more than one million train travellers will travel free for two days – on 31 July and 1 August – acknowledgment of extended disruptions because of industrial action.
Meanwhile, in Victoria, the Guardian’s state correspondent, Benita Kolovos, offers a sneak peak of the new underground stations for Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel.
Here’s what’s coming up today:
The shadow minister for communication and women, Melissa McIntosh, will be on the ABC’s Insiders this morning. As the Liberal party addresses its lack of women, McIntosh has proposed gender-based candidate pools as an alternative to quotas. The Qantas cyber-attack, which affected six million customers, will probably be on the list of questions.
The number of deaths from flash flooding in Texas has risen to 32, with authorities confirming 14 children in the toll. There are still 27 people missing. You can follow developments here.
I’m Petra Stock and I’ll be taking the blog through the day.
