/qnotables23/ - ===Q Notables 2023===

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19903654 (120949ZNOV23) Notable: Video: Wong calls on Israel to cease attacks on hospitals - Foreign Minister Penny Wong has called on Israel to halt attacks on hospitals in Gaza to avoid casualties among Palestinian civilians, stepping up Australian concerns over a widening conflict in the Middle East. Wong condemned Hamas for its terrorist attack on Israeli civilians on October 7 and its use of civilian facilities to shield its fighters, but said Israel should abide by humanitarian law that forbids attacks on medical centres. The Greens reacted to Wong’s remarks by saying she should have called much earlier for the protection of hospitals from Israeli attacks, but the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the Zionist Federation of Australia criticised her comments and said the government should hold Hamas unequivocally responsible for the conflict

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>>128527

>>128624

Wong calls on Israel to cease attacks on hospitals

David Crowe - November 12, 2023

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Foreign Minister Penny Wong has called on Israel to halt attacks on hospitals in Gaza to avoid casualties among Palestinian civilians, stepping up Australian concerns over a widening conflict in the Middle East.

Wong condemned Hamas for its terrorist attack on Israeli civilians on October 7 and its use of civilian facilities to shield its fighters, but said Israel should abide by humanitarian law that forbids attacks on medical centres.

The government also warned against violence at Australian demonstrations in support of either side in the conflict, with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles saying people had a right to speak up about government policy but should not aim their protests at other members of the community.

The comments came as protesters took to Australian streets on Sunday to call for government action on the conflict, with pro-Palestinian groups highlighting the civilian deaths in Gaza and Jewish groups showing support for hundreds of Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas terrorists.

The Greens reacted to Wong’s remarks by saying she should have called much earlier for the protection of hospitals from Israeli attacks, but the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the Zionist Federation of Australia criticised her comments and said the government should hold Hamas unequivocally responsible for the conflict.

French President Emmanuel Macron called on Saturday for a ceasefire, while G7 foreign ministers issued a statement on Thursday that called for a “humanitarian pause” in the conflict, representing a joint position of the United States, Britain, Canada, Japan, France, Italy and Germany.

Wong, speaking on Sunday morning, singled out Hamas as a terrorist group and highlighted its use of Israeli hostages, given estimates that it holds about 240 Israeli civilians inside Gaza in breach of international law.

“We need steps towards a ceasefire. It cannot be one-sided. We know that Hamas is still holding hostages, and we know that a ceasefire must be agreed between the parties,” Wong told the ABC’s Insiders program.

“But we can also say that Israel should do everything it can to observe international humanitarian law.

“I would make this point in relation to hospitals and medical facilities: that international humanitarian law does require the protection of hospitals, of patients and of medical staff.

“And we do call on Israel to cease the attacking of hospitals. We understand the argument that Hamas is burrowed into civilian infrastructure. But, you know, I think the international community, looking at what is occurring in hospitals, would say to Israel: these are facilities protected under international law and we want you to do so.”

Wong said there was no doubt Hamas was shielding its fighters behind civilian infrastructure. But she added this did not obviate Israel’s responsibility under international law.

“We know Hamas is a terrorist organisation. It has demonstrated that it has no respect for international law,” she said.

“But Australia is a democracy and so too is Israel, and the standards that we seek and accept are higher, and international humanitarian law is very clear about the principles that need to be applied by Israel.

“They are distinction, they are precaution and they are proportionality.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19903681 (121008ZNOV23) Notable: Government doesn't know details behind cyber hack that shut down port operator DP World

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>>128619

>>128620

Government doesn't know details behind cyber hack that shut down port operator DP World

Georgia Roberts - 12 November 2023

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The government does not yet know who was behind a cybersecurity incident that has shut down Australia's second-largest port operator, and could affect freight in and out of the country for days.

DP World Australia — which operates ports in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle, and is responsible for 40 per cent of Australia's maritime freight — closed after it began responding to a cybersecurity incident on Friday.

"The company, in collaboration with cybersecurity experts, has worked tirelessly, making significant progress in re-establishing landside freight operations at its ports," DP World Australia said in a statement.

It said it was collaborating "working closely with government and private sector stakeholders to identify and retrieve sensitive inbound freight" and held some concerns over the possible leaking of the companies' private data.

"A key line of inquiry in this ongoing investigation is the nature of data access and data theft. DP World Australia appreciates this development may cause concern for some stakeholders. DP World Australia is working hard to assess whether any personal information has been impacted and has taken proactive steps to engage the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner."

It said its teams were "testing key systems crucial for the resumption of normal operations and regular freight movement" and it would provide a further update once testing was complete.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil took to X, formerly Twitter, to share a statement on the incident which she described as "serious and ongoing".

She added that managing cyber incidents of this kind is incredibly complex and she's working with all relevant stakeholders in an effort to protect Australia's interests and "working to ensure our ports and transport networks keep working while DP World resolves the incident".

"This incident is a reminder of the serious risk that cyber attacks pose to our country, and to vital infrastructure we all rely on," Ms O'Neil said.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19903692 (121019ZNOV23) Notable: Malaysian hitman released from Australian immigration detention after high court ruling

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>>128590

>>128546

Malaysian hitman released from Australian immigration detention after high court ruling

Sirul Azhar Umar, sentenced in Malaysia over a politically charged murder, cannot be deported by Australia because he would face the death penalty

Christopher Knaus and Paul Karp - 12 Nov 2023

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A Malaysian bodyguard sentenced over the politically charged murder of a pregnant woman is among dozens of people released from immigration detention after Wednesday’s high court ruling.

Sirul Azhar Umar, a bodyguard to former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, has languished in immigration detention in Australia since having his claim for asylum in Australia rejected in 2019.

The Australian government has declined to deport him back to Malaysia, because he faces the death penalty and would be hanged if he returned.

His lawyer, William Levingston, confirmed to Guardian Australia that Sirul had been released after the high court decision but could not be deported back to Malaysia.

“My client is facing death by hanging in Malaysia for a murder conviction and until the death penalty is abolished by the Malaysian government, the Australian government is unable to deport Sirul Umar due to non-refoulement obligations,” he said.

The solicitor general, Stephen Donaghue, has identified 92 people who are potentially affected by the decision, though has conceded his estimate may not be exhaustive.

Guardian Australia revealed on Friday that more than half of the 92 people identified by Donaghue had their visas cancelled by ministers due to serious concerns about criminality.

Documents tendered as part of the case show 78 are owed protection and half a dozen had been in detention for over a decade.

The Albanese government has begun releasing individuals from indefinite detention after receiving multiple demands from long-term detainees.

Advocates estimate about 50 people have already been released, including all 27 who were held at Yongah Hill immigration detention and about eight so far from Villawood.

Many so far have been released without visas, reflecting the urgency of ensuring the commonwealth did not face false imprisonment compensation claims. Their status is expected to be regularised with bridging visas in days or weeks.

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19903720 (121046ZNOV23) Notable: History repeating? What the world could expect from a second Donald Trump presidency - "Americans will head to the polls in November next year to elect a president - but will they re-elect a former one? While sitting president Joe Biden is the Democratic Party's presumptive nominee, he may not be the only person to have served in the role to be in the running for it again. Former US president Donald Trump is also running for presidency in 2024, but what are his chances of returning to the Oval Office? Trump served as president from January 2017 to January 2021, after losing the election to current president Biden. He refused to concede, spreading claims of electoral fraud and initiating a campaign to overturn the result. Trump is one of nine Republican candidates in the running to be the party's presidential nominee. He will go through the pre-selection process to determine whether it will be his name or someone else's that's eventually listed on the ballot paper." - Aleisha Orr - sbs.com.au

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History repeating? What the world could expect from a second Donald Trump presidency

Donald Trump was the 45th president of the United States. As he moves to become the 47th, what are his chances of a second term?

Aleisha Orr - 12 November 2023

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Americans will head to the polls in November next year to elect a president — but will they re-elect a former one?

While sitting president Joe Biden is the Democratic Party's presumptive nominee, he may not be the only person to have served in the role to be in the running for it again.

Former US president Donald Trump is also running for presidency in 2024, but what are his chances of returning to the Oval Office?

The 45th President of the United States

Trump served as president from January 2017 to January 2021, after losing the election to current president Biden.

He refused to concede, spreading claims of electoral fraud and initiating a campaign to overturn the result.

Trump is one of nine Republican candidates in the running to be the party's presidential nominee.

He will go through the pre-selection process to determine whether it will be his name or someone else's that's eventually listed on the ballot paper.

Trump - a president unlike any other

Trump was the first president to be impeached twice – once for alleged abuse of power and once for inciting insurrection – and acquitted.

He is facing legal action over a number of matters.

Trump is due to stand trial next year regarding his role in an attack on the US Capitol by his supporters on 6 January 2021, and separately on federal charges around the alleged illegal retention of secret documents.

A civil fraud case against Trump and his family business is ongoing, after the judge in the case ruled Trump and his company had fraudulently inflated the value of their assets and his net worth.

In a separate case in New York, Trump is accused of falsifying business records in connection with a 'hush-money' payment made before the 2016 presidential election, in violation of election laws.

In Georgia, a criminal investigation resulted in Trump being charged with several conspiracy-related charges. The prosecution alleges the former US president and 18 co-defendants "joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome" of the 2020 presidential election in the state.

Trump has also been found guilty of sexually abusing author and columnist E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s, but is appealing the outcome.

What are Donald Trump's chances of winning the election?

Gordon Flake, chief executive officer of the Perth USAsia Centre at the University of Western Australia, said unless Trump suffered a huge loss in popularity or made the decision not to run, he predicted Trump would become the Republican presidential candidate.

"I think it's safe to plan at this point, a year out from the election, that he will be on the ballot as the Republican candidate in 2024," he said.

This is despite the possibility Trump may become a convicted felon following his court cases next year.

"He's facing these 91 different felony indictments, any one of those could have him be a convicted felon," Flake said.

He said while American presidents were restricted to two terms in the highest office in the land, there were few other restrictions on eligibility.

"There are only three restrictions in the Constitution as to who can run for president. They have to be at least 35 years old, natural born and have lived in the United States for 14 years," Flake said.

However, he said Trump's role in the 6 January Capitol riot could prove to create a hurdle in his possible path back to the White House.

"The only question is that there's a 14th amendment that came out after the Civil War, which basically says anyone who's engaged in an insurrection in the United States or aided and abetted insurrection are ineligible," Flake said.

"So that that may be a source of some efforts to try to get Trump off the ballot in some states."

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907927 (130907ZNOV23) Notable: Palestine rallies condemned for Hitler, Nazi references

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>>128527

>>128622

Palestine rallies condemned for Hitler, Nazi references

JOHN FERGUSON and NOAH YIM - NOVEMBER 12, 2023

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Pro-Palestinian protesters have brandished anti-Semitic placards drawing on Hitler and the Nazis’ legacies at rallies in the nation’s two biggest cities, less than 48 hours after Australia’s biggest Jewish community in Melbourne was confronted by violent people opposed to Israel’s military tactics in the war against Hamas.

Tens of thousands of people backing the Palestinian cause gathered in Melbourne and Sydney, with a minority of protesters drawing reference to Adolf Hitler, Auschwitz and depicting the Star of David being thrown into a bin, with the words: “Let’s clean the world from (sic) rubbish.’’

In Sydney, one placard read “Hitler = Netanyahu, Nazism = Zionism, Nazis = IDF”.

Another featured a picture of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a moustache, declaring: “Nazi Netanyahu.”

Anti-Defamation Commission chair Dvir Abramovich blasted the weekend attack on the Melbourne suburb of Caulfield and warned of the damage caused by anti-Semitism in the weeks after the horrific Hamas attacks on Israeli soil.

“I never thought I would see such hate-fuelled events taking place in the country that I love, and the ripple effects of such demonisation are being felt deeply and have real-world consequences, as we saw with the explosion of anti-Semitic rioting in Caulfield on Friday,” he said.

“These venomous banners, comparing Israel’s war against Hamas, a terrorist organisation that beheaded babies, raped women and executed entire families, to the Nazi extermination of 1.5 million in Auschwitz, as well as the use of dehumanising language about Jews, is a perverse new low.”

The centres of Melbourne and Sydney were awash with mainly peaceful pro-Palestinian protesters demanding a ceasefire in the war. The Melbourne march, which drew many thousands of people, was an amalgam of the city’s diverse ethnic communities, backed by some unions, First Nations leaders and many families.

While it was largely peaceful – and organisers called for an end to anti-Semitism – there were frequent examples of overly anti-Jewish commentary.

One man wielded a placard declaring: “Gaza looks like Auschwitz.” There were several placards declaring the conflict started in 1948 and not on October 7, when Israelis were slain by Hamas.

Mark Leaman, a Jewish former IDF soldier, said the Israeli bombardment of Gaza had been a disgrace.

“It is nothing less than ethnic cleansing,” he said. “I believe in the security of all people.’’

Melbourne man Liam Jones said the large-scale loss of life in Gaza was unforgivable. “I don’t want to be silent when genocide is happening,’’ Mr Jones said. “I want to be on the right side of history.’’

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907944 (130924ZNOV23) Notable: Video: Jewish leaders lash Penny Wong as Middle East ceasefire call condemned

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>>128527

>>128624

Jewish leaders lash Penny Wong as Middle East ceasefire call condemned

JOE KELLY - NOVEMBER 13, 2023

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The nation’s leading Jewish ­organisations have condemned Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s call for a ceasefire in the Middle East, warning there can be no resolution while Hamas retains control of Gaza and cautioning Labor against embracing narratives that “demonise the state of Israel”.

Speaking after violent clashes on Friday night when Palestinian supporters entered the heart of Jewish Melbourne in Caulfield to protest near a synagogue, Senator Wong on Sunday called on Israel to abide by international law and stop “the attacking of hospitals”.

She said that Israel – as a democracy – needed to be held to higher standards than Hamas and declared that “we all want to take the next step towards a ceasefire”, stressing that any agreement could not be one-sided and would require the agreement of both parties.

“Australia is a democracy and so too is Israel. And the standards that we seek and accept are higher. And international humanitarian law is very clear about the principles that need to be followed by ­Israel,” Senator Wong told the ABC. “Israel should do everything it can to ­observe international ­humanitarian law. We have seen a harrowing number of civilians, ­including children, killed. This has to end.”

The comments came as tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters – some brandishing anti-Semitic placards drawing on Hitler and the Nazis’ legacies – ­attended rallies in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. About 5000 pro-Israel supporters also gathered in Sydney’s eastern suburbs at a “Set Them Free” vigil to demand the release of more than 200 Jewish hostages taken by Hamas terrorists on October 7.

International calls have been growing for Israel to exercise restraint, with Gazan health officials saying more than 11,000 people have been killed in the five-week bombardment launched in response to the October 7 attack in which Hamas killed 1200 people – the most lethal attack on Jews since the Holocaust.

Senator Wong’s comments also triggered a fresh backlash from the Jewish community, with the Australia-Israel Jewish Affairs Council executive director Colin Rubenstein saying that “ceasefire equals surrender”.

The Zionist Federation of Australia and the Executive Council of Australian Jewry advised the ­Albanese government not to lend credibility to political narratives that sought to “demonise the state of Israel”.

“We remind the government that Article 19 of the Geneva Convention explicitly states that hospitals lose their protection if they are used for military purposes,” they said in a joint statement. “It is incontrovertible that Hamas uses Shifa and other hospitals for military purposes. There is no evidence that Israel is not observing the laws of armed conflict.”

They also warned that claims of war crimes in response to Israeli attacks on Gazan hospitals used to shield Hamas terrorists were “central to Hamas’ objectives as a terrorist organisation” and were “reverberating across the world in a new wave of anti-Semitism”. “The government of Australia should not be lending any credibility to this false and harmful narrative,” they said.

Strategic Analysis Australia director Peter Jennings said the push from Senator Wong for a ceasefire was “extremely regrettable and not what one would expect from a country that wants to be taken seriously in international affairs”.

“There’s just no logical consistency to the government’s position right now. They say Israel has a right to defend itself but they don’t appear to accept how that has to happen,” Mr Jennings told The Australian. “Leaving Hamas in charge of Gaza – is that what Penny Wong wants?”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907951 (130931ZNOV23) Notable: Penny Wong’s ceasefire push alarms the nation’s Jewish community, raises new questions on Middle East policy

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>>128527

>>128624

>>128631

Penny Wong’s ceasefire push raises new questions on Middle East policy

JOE KELLY - NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Penny Wong’s call for a ceasefire in Gaza has ignited deep concerns about the direction of Middle East policy and further alarmed the ­nation’s Jewish community as it struggles against a frightening new wave of anti-Semitism across the globe and within Australia.

The updated government position, which will have zero impact internationally and be ­ignored by Israel, also puts Australia in a different camp from the US and Britain and risks deepening fractures within the ALP over the conflict as parliament resumes on Monday.

Jewish community leaders and security experts responded to Wong by questioning what the implications of a ceasefire meant. Did it mean the government was now applying pressure for a solution that enabled ongoing terrorist control over Gaza?

Wong was not explicit on this issue in her ABC interview on Sunday morning, saying only that a ceasefire could not be “one-sided” and would need to be “agreed ­between the parties.”

But the caveat was not strong enough for the Jewish community, with two leading Jewish bodies ­advising the government that any ceasefire that did not involve the removal of Hamas was unacceptable to Israel.

Wong’s remarks were also branded as “idiot international posturing” by leading strategic analyst Peter Jennings who asked: “Leaving Hamas in charge of Gaza – is that what Penny Wong wants? I’ve never heard anyone from the government say what Hamas should do. Hamas should surrender.”

Former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton last week made a clear and powerful argument against a ceasefire in Gaza, warning that it would enable Hamas to rearm and reposition while failing to remove the terrorist threat to ­Israel.

Clinton issued a reminder that a ceasefire was broken by Hamas through its “barbaric assault on peaceful civilians” that resulted in the slaughter of about 1200 Israelis on October 7.

“There was a ceasefire. It did not hold because Hamas chose to break it,” Clinton said.

“Hamas is a terrorist organisation. It has made very clear it is committed to the elimination of the state of Israel, and it has consistently broken ceasefires over a number of years.”

US President Joe Biden has also described the chances of a ceasefire in Gaza as “none – no possibility” while, in Britain, ­Opposition Leader Sir Keir Starmer has, so far, resisted fierce internal pressure to back a ceasefire – despite more than 60 of his own MPs calling on him to do so.

The decision by Wong to push the case for a ceasefire – piggybacking on the advocacy of French President Emmanuel Macron – now risks turning the Middle East conflict into an even greater flashpoint for internal ALP divisions. Wong’s remarks will also guarantee the issue is elevated politically as parliament returns.

The risk for Labor is becoming embroiled in a renewed political debate over Middle East policy when it needs clear air to address the public’s fears over cost-of-living pressures amid growing concerns Anthony Albanese has spent too much time overseas.

Signposting the rifts within the government, the Labor MP for Macnamara in Melbourne, Josh Burns, told The Australian that he stood by his comments last week in which he said that asking Israel for a ceasefire without the return of hostages “would be akin to telling their families that they are giving up on bringing their loved ones home.”

The Coalition will focus a large part of its political attack for the week ahead on divisions within Labor over Israel.

Liberal leader Peter Dutton ­argues that the government support for a ceasefire is “not consistent with our allies”.

The latest positioning by Labor also risks reinforcing suspicions that the government’s Middle East policy is now being partly driven by domestic political considerations – the very criticism Labor levelled at Scott Morrison when he was prime minister.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/penny-wongs-ceasefire-push-raises-new-questions-on-middle-east-policy/news-story/816270d5f9560d4a2ba2fd5ff9377254

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907961 (130942ZNOV23) Notable: Anthony Albanese, Penny Wong and Labor must clarify their Israel-Gaza position urgently - "Anthony Albanese, Penny Wong and senior Labor ministers have to get their positions on the international security threat arising from the Hamas attacks on Israel and rising domestic threats from anti-Semitism straight and clear. What’s more, they have to do it immediately. Each day of doubt and confusion exponentially increases the fear within the Australian Jewish community, emboldens the racists and amplifies the hate speech. In Australia, the US and UK there have been anti-Semitic attacks and protests aimed at Jews, synagogues and businesses under the guise of equating the Israeli government and Jews. It is not anti-Semitic to criticize the Israeli government but it is anti-Semitic to attack Jews. Yet, like so many foreign policy issues where there should be prepared, confident and clear responses to obvious questions - whether on China, the Pacific or Israel - the Albanese government seems unprepared, hesitant and contradictory." - Dennis Shanahan - theaustralian.com.au

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>>128527

>>128624

>>128631

Anthony Albanese, Penny Wong and Labor must clarify their Israel-Gaza position urgently

DENNIS SHANAHAN - NOVEMBER 13, 2023

Anthony Albanese, Penny Wong and senior Labor ministers have to get their positions on the international security threat arising from the Hamas attacks on Israel and rising domestic threats from anti-Semitism straight and clear. What’s more, they have to do it immediately.

Each day of doubt and confusion exponentially increases the fear within the Australian Jewish community, emboldens the racists and amplifies the hate speech.

The first thing that the political leadership has to do is separate the two issues and take appropriate action for each.

As part of a global campaign to isolate Israel from its international friends and to divide the Jewish people, as blame is shifted from the Hamas attacks to the deadly drawn-out Israeli response in Gaza, there is a conflation of the actions of the Israel government and Jews.

In Australia, the US and UK there have been anti-Semitic attacks and protests aimed at Jews, synagogues and businesses under the guise of equating the Israeli government and Jews. It is not anti-Semitic to criticize the Israeli government but it is anti-Semitic to attack Jews.

Yet, like so many foreign policy issues where there should be prepared, confident and clear responses to obvious questions — whether on China, the Pacific or Israel — the Albanese government seems unprepared, hesitant and contradictory.

Five weeks after the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel that killed 1,400 people and captured 240 hostages and four weeks after the Israeli retaliatory invasion of Gaza to eradicate the terrorists has killed thousands the Australian government is still sending mixed messages.

The Foreign Minister’s weekend call for a ceasefire in Gaza, a demand that Israel be held to a higher standard and to stop bombing hospitals, while further clouding Australia’s international policy, are points open to foreign policy debate.

But, by not explicitly condemning anti-Semitism and by observing that the organisers of a violent protest outside a synagogue in Melbourne’s Caulfield – which had to be evacuated – had apologised was not a clear response.

Wong’s appeal was to “all communities” not to promote hatred although it is only the Jewish community being subjected to vile and violent demonstrations, boycotts, death threats and a tsunami of social media attacks.

Coming after other ministers have not rejected the slur of genocide and used the language of war crimes in relation to Israel, Wong’s response extends the equivalence of diplomatic language to a domestic security situation in which there is no equivalence.

Jewish mobs are not protesting outside mosques in Lakemba in western Sydney.

In 2005, at the time of the Cronulla riots which were directed against people of “Middle Eastern appearance”, John Howard, prime minister at the time, was criticised for saying there was no “underlying racism in Australia” and emergency laws were introduced in NSW to allow police to control “disorder” in a public place.

Since then there have been more laws introduced to combat racism, discrimination and hate speech.

The evidence of anti-Semitism is as clear as the protest in front of the Sydney Opera House and there is also a clear need for the security and unity of Australian society. To counter the first and ensure the second there needs to be clearer, stronger leadership from the Albanese government in concert with state authorities.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/anthony-albanese-penny-wong-and-labor-must-clarify-their-israelgaza-position-urgentl/news-story/778e2df6da2a556397068eaedea10257

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907966 (130951ZNOV23) Notable: Chilling threat sent to Australia’s peak Jewish body: ‘We are coming for you’

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>>128527

>>128611

>>128630

Chilling threat sent to Australia’s peak Jewish body: ‘We are coming for you’

CAMERON STEWART - NOVEMBER 13, 2023

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The image of an Islamic State ­terrorist with a knife in his hand about to behead a hostage in Syria was sent to Australia’s peak Jewish body with the words “We are coming for you soon, from western Sydney”.

The nation’s peak Jewish body, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies ­received the image via direct message on Instagram on October 12, less than a week after Hamas terrorists slaughtered 1200 Israeli citizens in southern Israel.

NSW Police investigated the incident and on November 1, a 33-year-old man from the southern Sydney suburb of Wolli Creek was arrested.

A NSW Police spokesperson said the man was charged with ­behaving in an offensive manner in a public place, using a carriage service to threaten to kill and three counts of using a carriage service to menace and offend. He was refused bail and was remanded in custody to appear in court on January 10.

The shocking incident is just one of a nationwide surge in death threats, abuse on the streets and incitement to violence against Jewish Australians that accelerated across the country over the weekend.

In the Jewish Melbourne suburb of Caulfield, where Palestinian demonstrators attacked pro-Israel supporters on Friday, two young Jewish men were assaulted by a group of men of Middle Eastern appearance just after midnight on Saturday who told the victims they had come to Caulfield because of the “protests”.

In the NSW city of Newcastle, the home of a Jewish Rabbi was defaced with graffiti urging people to “Kill the Jews this morning” while in Sydney’s Surry Hills the Shaffa restaurant was subjected to a graffiti attack with “child murder” written on its walls.

Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Melbourne’s CBD on Sunday, calling for Israel to stop its attacks in Gaza, but the rally also included anti-Semitic signs.

One included a depiction of a man throwing the Jewish Star of David into a bin with “Let’s clean the world from Rubbish”, while another compared Gaza with the Auschwitz concentration camp where more than a million Jews were murdered.

Another sign said: “Gaza = Gas Chamber.”

“Enough is enough,” David Ossip, president of the NSW ­Jewish Board of Deputies, told The Australian.

“The Jewish ­community is experiencing levels of anti-Semitism we never previously thought possible. All people of goodwill need to join with the Jewish community to draw a line in the sand and say clearly and without equivocation – no more.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907977 (131004ZNOV23) Notable: How the Jewish heart of Caulfield became a Mid-East battleground

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>>128527

>>128611

How the Jewish heart of Caulfield became a Mid-East battleground

CAMERON STEWART - NOVEMBER 13, 2023

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The panicked messages starting bouncing through the large Jewish community in the Melbourne suburb of Caulfield on Friday afternoon, hours before the violent street clash between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel groups that night.

“Highly unprecedented and threatening,” said one. “Can you believe they are coming to Caulfield?” said another, adding: “escalating quickly.”

Caulfield is the nation’s Jewish heartland, with Jews accounting for 41 per cent of its 20,000 people, many of whom are still grieving Israeli friends and loved ones lost in the Hamas massacre of October 7.

The notion that hundreds of pro-Palestinian supporters would choose to hold a rally in Caulfield was highly provocative and based on a dubious premise.

The stated reason for holding a rally there was the destruction by fire on Thursday night of a local burger shop in Caulfield called Burgertory, owned by a Palestinian Australian Hash Tahey who has been prominent in pro-Palestinian protests in Melbourne.

Police said before the rally they were “very confident” the blaze was not racially or politically motivated but pro-Palestinian supporters ignored that advice and labelled it an anti-Palestinian hate crime.

I watched from the side of the road as the demonstration at Princes Park along Hawthorn Rd adjacent to a synagogue in South Caulfield started off peacefully but soon turned angry.

The Palestinian side, numbering several hundred, quickly went beyond calls of “free Palestine” and “Free Gaza”, to more provocative chants including “Israel, USA, how many kids did you kill today”, and “From the River to the Sea”, which is a call to destroy Israel.

Several musclebound hotheads from the Palestinian side went further, abusing some Jewish women standing nearby who had wrapped the Israeli flag around their body.

One started throwing homophobic slurs at Jewish onlookers and at one point raised his arm in what from a distance looked like a Nazi salute. Cries of Allahu Akbar, meaning God is Great, rang out at various times.

As the noise from the protest became louder, the local synagogue was evacuated for safety.

“People inside their homes having Shabbat dinner terrified hearing the chants of Allahu Akbar,” said one message sent by a Jewish community member. “Synagogue evacuated.”

As the demonstration progressed, an ever-larger group of pro-Israel supporters began to gather directly across the road as word spread through the community.

Many of them returned the insults that were being shouted at them by the Palestinian side.

The police, outnumbered and poorly prepared for what was about to happen, lined up along both sides of Hawthorn Rd to try to keep the warring parties apart.

Cars carrying pro-Palestinians drove down Hawthorn Rd between the two groups, with some yelling obscenities and raising the finger to the Israeli crowd.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907983 (131012ZNOV23) Notable: Government to strengthen unused section of the Crimes Act to prevent anti-Semitism

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Government to strengthen unused law to prevent anti-Semitism

An unused section of the Crimes Act that criminalises threatening or inciting violence on various grounds including race or religion may be strengthened by the NSW government to clamp down on both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia resulting from the conflict in Israel and Gaza.

The Australian understands questions have been raised within the Minns government about the effectiveness of Section 93Z of the Crimes Act – specifically, that no case has been successfully prosecuted under the ­reforms since it was introduced in August 2018.

While six people have been charged with committing an offence under the section since 2018, two convictions were annulled in 2021, two people had their charges withdrawn, and two matters were adjourned to this year and are ­facing further delays.

NSW Police advised the state government in October that those final two matters would now be heard in 2024.

In order to obtain a successful prosecution going forward, there is a belief within the government the law needs to be reformed, The Australian understands.

Critics of section 93Z have raised a number of issues with the law, including that “inciting violence” has a high legal threshold; that the need for offences to be investigated by NSW Police and require the approval of the Director of Public Prosecutions has created “an administrative bottleneck”; and that it deals only with the ­specific hate crime of “of intentionally or recklessly threatening or inciting violence”.

The Australian has also revealed that NSW Police ­Minister Yasmin Catley has been handed legal advice, compiled by ­barristers, which says anyone ­yelling “gas the Jews”, as occurred at a pro-Palestine Opera House rally, could be prosecuted under Section 93Z.

“The call to ‘gas the Jews’ is in a different category. The usage of the term ‘gas’ would, to the ordinary person, be a clear reference to what occurred in World War II – systematic mass genocide by using lethal gas on Jewish people. The statement, understood ­literally, is a threat or incitement to kill,” the advice, written by barristers Andrew Boe and Dan Fuller, reads.

NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman, who introduced the laws when he was attorney-general, told The Australian the events of October 9 needed to be closely investigated, and penalised under 93Z if appropriate.

The 93Z laws were introduced in 2018 by the Coalition after a concerted lobbying effort by an alliance of 31 groups, who warned the old laws were allowing threats of racially and religiously motivated violence to go unpunished.

Those prosecuted will be penalised with up to a $11,000 fine and/or three years’ imprisonment.

The Australian understands the NSW government is also looking at what other safeguards can be strengthened to prevent people being vilified or abused for their beliefs, after a new and separate law – known as the Anti-Discrimination Amendment (Religious Vilification) Act 2023 – came into effect on Sunday.

The reform will make it un­lawful to, by a public act, incite ­hatred towards, serious contempt for, or severe ridicule of a person or group of persons because of their religious belief, affiliation or activity.

Premier Chris Minns said on Sunday there was no “room for ­hatred, which sows the seeds of mistrust and intolerance”.

“We cannot tolerate religious vilification. This would threaten the thriving, tolerant, multi-religious and multiethnic heart of NSW,” he said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/government-to-strengthen-unused-law-to-prevent-antisemitism/news-story/226666c4fcc56d21c7bb34ba2139a650

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19907992 (131023ZNOV23) Notable: Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli urges Jewish support amid rise in anti-Semitism

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Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli urges Jewish support as rise in anti-Semitism

Melbourne’s Archbishop has joined other faith and cultural leaders to condemn the “explosion of explicit anti-Semitism” following a recent violent clash by pro-Palestinian protesters.

Carly Douglas - November 12, 2023

Victoria’s top Christian leader has sent a powerful letter to Melbourne church leaders urging them to stand with the Jewish community against the “explosion of explicit anti-Semitism” in Australia.

Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli is among several faith and cultural figures throwing their support behind Jewish Victorians after their Melbourne homeland in Caulfield was attacked on Friday night by pro-Palestinian protesters.

On Saturday, Rev Comensoli issued a letter to be read at all Catholic churches on Sunday morning.

“The explosion of explicit anti-Semitism in parts of Australian society – on university campuses, in street protests, in mainstream and social media, and even among some claiming Christian belief – is shocking and deeply distressing,” he said.

“It speaks of the re-emergence of a latent distrust and culpable ignorance of the people of Jewish heritage, fuelled by deliberately fostered hatreds and loathing, and tied into dishonest agendas from extreme standpoints, both from the left and from the right.”

Archbishop Comensoli said the horror and tragedy perpetrated in Israel and Gaza did not justify the steep rise in anti-Semitism.

“The language of hatred and spite, of innuendo and slogan, is language emanating from a poisoned soul,” he said.

Makarand Bhagwat from the Hindu Council of Australia and fellow Indian community leader Jay Shah said they were standing in “unwavering solidarity” with the Jewish community against “terrorism” in anti-Semitism.

“Killing, mutilating, kidnapping, parading and torture of civilians by extreme ideologues are war crimes. We stand with the victims of terrorism,” Mr Bhagwat said.

“Hindus and Indians in Australia are in a lot of pain, watching the horror being inflicted on innocent citizens. We are mourning the death of 10 innocent Hindus who were killed in the same attack.”

He said the Hindu Council of Australia stands in solidarity “with all Israelis, with Jews around the world and with our Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia during one of the darkest hours of humanity in our lifetimes”.

Mr Shah said the Indian and Jewish community had a “shared experience” of terrorism, with many Australian-Indians now forced to reflect on their own “personal or historical connections as victims of terror when they used to live in India”.

“It has also evoked poignant memories of the brutal terror attacks that besieged Mumbai in 2008, indiscriminately claiming the lives of innocent people in bustling hubs of everyday life,” he said.

Responding to the rise in anti-Semitism, Mr Shah said Australia’s cultural diversity “leaves no room for the seeds of racial hatred, be it anti-Semitism, Hinduphobia, or any other form of discrimination”.

“We also appeal for the safety of civilians and to ensure that humanitarian aid continues to reach Palestinian civilians,” he said.

Rabbinical Association of Australasia president Rabbi Yaakov Glasman thanked the leaders for their support “during this exceptionally challenging time”, as well as Premier Jacinta Allan on “her strong and principled stance and for her call for peaceful demonstrations”.

“There is no place for violence or hate speech in our wonderful state,” he said.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/melbourne-arch-bishop-peter-comensoli-urges-jewish-support-as-rise-in-antisemitism/news-story/a24e9536a87420e97715e5b9bbcf84f8

https://www.facebook.com/ArchbishopPeterComensoli/posts/1307948026762547

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19908007 (131037ZNOV23) Notable: Ransomware crackdown: Companies will be forced to report cyber ransom demands under Australia’s first mandatory no-fault reporting system

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Ransomware crackdown in new cyber security strategy

GEOFF CHAMBERS - NOVEMBER 12, 2023

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Companies will be forced to report cyber ransom demands under Australia’s first mandatory no-fault reporting system but will not be banned from paying criminal gangs and state-sponsored offenders, amid a 45 per cent surge in global ransomware attacks this year.

The new regime, a centrepiece of the Albanese government’s cyber security strategy expected to be released next week, comes following a suspected ransomware attack on Friday against DP World Australia, which operates 40 per cent of the nation’s maritime freight.

The cyber attack, described by Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil as “serious and ongoing” after shutting down Australia’s second biggest port operator, follows attacks on companies including Optus, Medibank, BlueScope, Nine Entertainment, Toll and major healthcare providers.

Key elements of the government’s seven-year cyber strategy includes an early-warning system for ransomware attacks, a ransomware playbook and a fightback strategy targeting “thugs and criminals”.

As chair of the International Counter Ransomware Task Force, which met in Washington this month, Australia will launch counter-ransomware operations alongside 50 global partners including the US, Britain, India, France, the EU, Israel, Japan and South Africa.

In addition to sanctions targeting ransomware criminals, who cost the global economy $13.5 trillion last year, the Australian Federal Police and Australian Signals Directorate will ramp up operations to identify, investigate and strike back at cyber gangs.

Coalition-era critical infrastructure laws, designed to oversee the protection of water, energy, telecommunications, transport, defence industry, healthcare and other core assets, are expected to be strengthened given the pace of technological advancements and rise in threats.

Mandatory, no-liability ransomware obligations overseen by the government will require businesses to report any ransom incident, demand or payment. The early-warning system, designed to help businesses get swift support, will not carry any penalties.

The government will consult industry on the early-warning system following the release of the cyber security strategy, which is expected after Anthony Albanese’s visit to San Francisco later this week for the APEC summit.

While the government strongly discourages Australians from paying ransoms, which is often the cheaper and faster option for companies, it will not ban payments following talks with business leaders. US companies and entities are estimated to have paid more than $2bn in ransoms over the 12 months to mid-2023.

With ransomware costing the Australian economy almost $3bn annually, Ms O’Neil said the government would continue “to strongly discourage businesses from paying ransoms”.

“There is no guarantee you will regain access to your information, or prevent it from being sold or leaked online. You may also be targeted by another attack,” Ms O’Neil said.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19908026 (131045ZNOV23) Notable: Freight giant DP World recovers from cyber attack, but warns investigation and remediation is 'ongoing'

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Freight giant DP World recovers from cyber attack, but warns investigation and remediation is 'ongoing'

Daniel Ziffer and Matt Bamford - 13 November 2023

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Shipping giant DP World Australia says its systems are working at its ports again, following a brief cyber attack which crippled the company's operations.

The company moves about 40 per cent of the nation's freight, and it was feared that a prolonged cybersecurity breach would make life harder for importers, retailers and Christmas shoppers — particularly those seeking items in hot demand around the world, like electronics.

"They're massive," explained Stephen Lakey, an independent director of the Supply Chain Logistics Association of Australia.

"Delays on bringing goods in now are being pushed out. Right before Christmas, of course, so not the best time."

DP World Australia said its operations resumed at 9am AEDT on Monday, after it conducted successful tests of its systems overnight.

It expects to transport around 5,000 containers from its four Australian terminals today.

"The ongoing investigation and response to protect networks and systems may cause some necessary, temporary disruptions to their services in the coming days," a DP World Australia statement noted.

"This is a part of an investigation process and resuming normal logistical operations at this scale."

The company said it continues to work closely with authorities including the National Cyber Security Coordinator, the Australian Cyber Security Centre, the Australian Federal Police and Ministers for Cyber Security and Transport, Clare O’Neil and Catherine King.

However, the statement warned that "the resumption of port operations does not mean that this incident has concluded".

"DP World Australia’s investigation and ongoing remediation work are likely to continue for some time."

Stacking up

The company was forced to shut its operations on Sunday, and around 30,000 containers were stacked up in its Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth depots.

Air Marshall Darren Goldie is the national Cyber Security Coordinator and had been helping with the response.

"That's one of the challenges they've had — the ability to continue to offload cargo," he told ABC Radio.

"But obviously in a closed container or cargo yard those facilities are filling up.

"I don't have any further estimation on the time it will take to restore, but the company does have confidence that is in the 'days' not 'weeks' category."

Mr Lakey, who works for Gamma Solutions, a company that helps with technology for logistics, said many items that would be wished for under Christmas trees are still entering Australian shores.

This means delays to the freight system could make it harder to get much-coveted gifts to shelves.

"I think it would, yes. Electronic goods, a lot of that is required around Christmas time, there's big demand in that area."

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913621 (140924ZNOV23) Notable: Anthony Albanese refuses to endorse Penny Wong’s Gaza ceasefire call

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Anthony Albanese refuses to endorse Penny Wong’s Gaza ceasefire call

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

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Anthony Albanese has refused to back Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s call for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against Hamas, or her suggestion that the Netanyahu government could be breaking international law by attacking hospitals in the Gaza Strip.

The Prime Minister sought to use question time on Monday to clarify Senator Wong’s comments a day earlier, as the Labor MP for the Victorian seat of Macnamara warned Palestine supporters not to return to the electorate to “intimidate local people”.

Backbencher Josh Burns lashed the violent behaviour of protesters on Friday night, saying they came to suburban Caulfield, which has a large Jewish community, to “scream at them and spit at them and throw rocks at them”.

Mr Albanese also declared his “unequivocal” condemnation of the protests, amid concerns inside Labor that the party’s “mixed messages” on the war could cost it Macnamara at the next election.

The nation’s most senior Jewish leaders blasted the government on Sunday after Senator Wong told the ABC’s Insiders program that “we all want to take the next step towards a ceasefire”, while noting that Hamas was a terrorist group that continued to hold Israeli hostages.

Senator Wong also suggested in the interview Israel was committing war crimes by “the attacking of hospitals”. Jewish leaders said any ceasefire with Hamas would amount to a surrender, and cautioned the government against political narratives that sought to “demonise the state of Israel”.

Peter Dutton asked Mr Albanese whether Senator Wong’s suggestion on Sunday that Israel was “breaching international law and should undertake a ceasefire” reflected government policy.

Mr Albanese said the Foreign Minister’s comments were consistent with a parliamentary motion condemning the Hamas attacks, but declined to endorse her call for a ceasefire.

Later, in response to Greens leader Adam Bandt, who asked how many children needed to die before the government would demand a ceasefire, Mr Albanese said his government was seeking humanitarian pauses as a necessary first step.

“We have said that any step on a path to he told parliament. “Hamas is still bombing Israel, is still using human shields and is still holding more than 200 hostages.

“I’ve said really consistently that Hamas has contempt for international law, they’re a terrorist organisation.

“But Israel as a democratic ­nation has a responsibility to uphold international law and protect innocent lives and to protect civilians, including children.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913631 (140931ZNOV23) Notable: Bill Shorten moves to edge Labor back from Penny Wong’s policy precipice over Israel-Hamas ceasefire

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Bill Shorten moves to edge Labor back from Penny Wong’s policy precipice over Israel-Hamas ceasefire

DENNIS SHANAHAN - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

Bill Shorten has emerged as yet another, different senior Labor voice on the Israeli-Hamas fighting in Gaza and the rise of anti-Semitism in Australia since the October 7 terror attacks.

Significantly the former Labor leader, Cabinet minister, leading Victorian right-winger who is seen as a long-term friend of Israel, sought to further modify Penny Wong’s weekend call for steps towards a ceasefire in Gaza and unequivocally criticised the anti-Semitic “hoons” who caused the evacuation of a synagogue last Friday.

The Albanese Government – facing internal divisions and demographic pressures from Palestinian supporters in Western Sydney – has been confused and contradictory on its support for Israel. It has also been slow to initiate criticism of anti-Semitic acts against Jews in Melbourne and Sydney.

In separate media interviews on Tuesday, ostensibly to talk about the final report into the Coalition’s failed Robodebt scheme, Shorten sought to bring Labor back from the Foreign Minister’s policy precipice over a ceasefire.

Wong’s support for a ceasefire and warning about Israel breaking international law went beyond the Government’s stated position – with dangerous ramifications for the status of the Hamas terror group – and looked like “mission creep” with Wong gradually shifting ground.

On Monday in Parliament Anthony Albanese played down Wong’s comment claiming she hadn’t called for ceasefire and declared it was within the terms of the Parliamentary motion passed in support of Israel after the terror attacks.

But the Prime Minister did not back any moves to “start the steps” towards a ceasefire.

Shorten went further on Tuesday stating that Australia was “in very close step” with the United States and other Western nations in seeking “a humanitarian pause” and rejected any notion of “negotiating” a ceasefire with the Hamas terrorists.

“We’ve called for a humanitarian pause, but we completely recognise that Israel’s dealing with Hamas who don’t want to negotiate,” Shorten said.

“How do you negotiate with someone who says you don’t have a right to exist?”

Shorten also said it was impossible for the Government to “just please everyone” and said the position on Israel and Palestine and anti-Semitism went beyond the electoral considerations in seats with large Jewish or Arabic populations.

“What we’re trying to do is operate by our principles. We absolutely recognise that what’s triggered this latest round of violence was the shocking, murderous attack by Hamas on Israel,” he said.

“I’m worried about the people who live in Caulfield. I’m worried about the legitimate distress that people see of the sieges in Gaza. It’s not about a particular electoral seat,” he said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/bill-shorten-moves-to-edge-labor-back-from-penny-wongs-policy-precipice-over-israelhamas-ceasefire/news-story/1069be22b8a92e9c40e6dc6dbd8e0be9

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913639 (140937ZNOV23) Notable: Wong’s attempts at nuance threaten to strand Australia in no man’s land - "Buffeted by gale-force winds to her political right and left, Penny Wong’s ability to navigate Australia through the tumultuous waters of Israel’s war with Hamas is being strained to the limit. The Israel-Hamas conflict is the ultimate high-risk, low-reward issue for Wong: Australia has little ability to influence events in the Middle East, but any slip-up in official language risks inflaming domestic tensions and inflicting political damage on the government." - Matthew Knott - theage.com.au

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Wong’s attempts at nuance threaten to strand Australia in no man’s land

Matthew Knott - November 13, 2023

Buffeted by gale-force winds to her political right and left, Penny Wong’s ability to navigate Australia through the tumultuous waters of Israel’s war with Hamas is being strained to the limit.

The Israel-Hamas conflict is the ultimate high-risk, low-reward issue for Wong: Australia has little ability to influence events in the Middle East, but any slip-up in official language risks inflaming domestic tensions and inflicting political damage on the government.

After all, it was over Israel-Palestine policy that Wong made one of the few major blunders of her tenure as foreign minister: last year’s bungled handling of the otherwise sensible decision to no longer recognise West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Pro-Israel groups were also unhappy earlier this year when the government announced it would refer to Israel’s settlements in the West Bank as “illegal” and the Palestinian territories as “occupied”.

A skilled political communicator, Wong has so far played an astute role in steering Australia’s response to the October 7 massacre and Israel’s subsequent war against Hamas.

While the Coalition, which is resolutely pro-Israel, blasted her for asking the Netanyahu government to exercise restraint in the immediate aftermath of Hamas’ attack, it was entirely sensible for her to want to minimise civilian casualties in Gaza. Similarly, she has backed Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorism, rejecting the Greens’ simplistic calls for an immediate ceasefire.

Wong hardened her language on Sunday by calling for Israel to “take the next steps towards a ceasefire” in Gaza, going further than either her United States or United Kingdom counterparts have so far. Her comments were typically nuanced – she noted that a ceasefire cannot be “one-sided” – but nuance is risky if it morphs into ambiguity and confusion.

Viewed from one angle, Wong’s comments are uncontroversial: everyone wants the fighting, the scenes of horror, in Gaza to end.

Jewish community leaders, however, said they were “highly concerned” by Wong’s remarks, declaring: “Any ceasefire that does not involve the return of the hostages and the removal of Hamas from power will only entrench Hamas and embolden Israel’s other genocidal enemies, like Hezbollah. It will guarantee more war and human suffering for all.”

A senior figure in Labor’s left faction, Wong has championed the cause of Palestinian statehood at successive Labor Party policy conferences, which helps explain why the Jewish community leaders have not given her the benefit of the doubt on this issue.

The problem with the term “ceasefire” is that it is both highly charged and vague: it is often unclear what those demanding one are actually asking for beyond the naive, if understandable, desire for the war in Gaza to magically stop.

The Israeli government has made clear that it will keep fighting until Hamas no longer controls Gaza and does not pose a national security risk to Israel. Both those goals are far from being achieved - as is the aim to secure the release of most, if not all, of those who were abducted on October 7 and taken hostage by Hamas.

French President Emmanuel Macron - who questionably fancies himself as a global peacemaker - is just the latest world leader to call for a ceasefire without explaining how it can be achieved while neutralising the threat of Hamas.

Calling for Israel to slow down, to show more restraint in its bombing campaign and to allow more humanitarian pauses are specific, realistic requests. Demanding that it stop its military campaign before it has achieved its legitimate objectives is not.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/penny-wong-s-attempts-at-nuance-threaten-to-strand-australia-in-no-man-s-land-20231113-p5ejky.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913666 (140952ZNOV23) Notable: ‘Hatred’ on show: Melbourne Rabbi Shmuel Karnowsky lashes pro-Palestinian protesters, as additional police officers sent to St Kilda, Caulfield and Balaclava “to provide visible police presence and community reassurance”

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‘Hatred’ on show: Rabbi Shmuel Karnowsky lashes protesters as police sent to help

CAMERON STEWART - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

An extra 60 police officers have been rushed to the suburbs of southeast Melbourne to reassure a fearful Jewish community about its safety as the rabbi who had to abandon a synagogue service in Caulfield on Friday labelled the pro-Palestinian demonstrators as being motivated by “blatant Jew hatred”.

The decision to send such a large number of additional police to three heavily Jewish suburbs – St Kilda, Caulfield and Balaclava – is in response to a steep spike in anti-Semitic incidents, which have rattled Melbourne’s Jewish community. The decision followed an urgent request for extra security from Jewish community leaders during a meeting with police on Saturday after a demonstration by pro-Palestine activists in Caulfield on Friday night ended in violent brawls between the Palestine and pro-Israel supporters.

The demonstration forced Rabbi Shmuel Karnowsky to cut short Friday night prayers for about 150 people at his synagogue adjacent to the protest site.

In an angry letter written to his congregation the next day, Rabbi Karnowsky said the pro-Palestine group that chose to hold their demonstration in Caulfield had “shattered” calm in the Jewish community.

“What occurred in South Caulfield on Friday night was shocking and deplorable,” the rabbi said. “That level of hate and violence has never happened on our peaceful streets before and it cannot be allowed to ever happen again.

“On Friday night, for our community, that feeling of refuge, calm and serenity was shattered. The freedom to practise our religion without fear or intimidation was jeopardised.

“Coming to our community, on a Shabbat, with intimidation, incitement, blatant Jew hatred and violence cannot be and should not be tolerated. It is abhorrent and must be dealt with swiftly and appropriately.

“We join with the entire Jewish community and demand from our government and leaders to go ­beyond supportive words and statements and empower Victoria Police to do everything necessary to ensure that our community remains safe and feels safe, on our streets and in our shules.”

A Victoria Police spokesperson said that for at least the next two weeks an additional 60 police officers would patrol St Kilda, Caulfield and Balaclava “to provide visible police presence and community reassurance”.

The Jewish community has strengthened privately funded security across Jewish schools, ­synagogues and organisations to protect against anti-Semitic attacks that began after the Hamas terror attack on Israel on October 7 and have continued to rise during Israel’s war on Hamas which has led to thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza.

Free Palestine Melbourne, the group that organised the Caulfield demonstration, has revealed it is organising another controversial protest by calling on all Melbourne schools to join in a “school strike for Palestine” on November 23.

Education Minister Jason Clare rejected the planned protest. “Students should be at school during school hours,”he said. “It’s incumbent on political and community leaders to turn the temperature down and do everything possible to maintain community cohesion.”

The nation’s peak Jewish Body, the Executive Council for Australian Jewry says incidents of serious anti-Semitic incidents are now at the highest level on record. Incidents have been recorded around the country, including the sending to the ECAJ of an image of an ­Islamic State terrorist with a knife in his hand about to behead a hostage in Syria with the words “We are coming for you soon, from western Sydney”.

Rabbi Karnowsky said he abandoned the prayer service at his synagogue on Friday night as a precaution to avoid any confrontation with the demonstrators who were arriving at the park ­opposite.

“We did not want confrontation and we did not want to expose our children, our people, to any of the ugly scenes that we didn’t know were going to unfold - but were quite predictable - just an hour or two later,” he said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/hatred-on-show-rabbi-shmuel-karnowsky-lashes-protesters-as-police-sent-to-help/news-story/c2860b7ff96d0e9f32c7d92cf543d3a5

https://www.facebook.com/centralshulechabad/posts/757449356421389

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913695 (141004ZNOV23) Notable: Melbourne school students plan walkout in support of Palestine

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Melbourne school students plan walkout in support of Palestine

Emma Koehn - November 13, 2023

A planned student strike in Melbourne to support Palestinians next week has drawn swift criticism from state and federal opposition MPs who argue students should not be used as “political pawns” in the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Free Palestine Melbourne posted details of the student walkout, organised by School Students For Palestine, on the group’s social media feeds on Monday afternoon, prompting a statement from federal Education Minister Jason Clare that children should be in class during school hours.

The group said the walkout would begin at 12.30pm – school lunchtime – on Thursday, November 23, followed by a protest in the CBD at 1.30pm.

One of the students involved in the event told The Age via email that groups of student activists were promoting the strike in a number of inner-city schools, including Princes Hill, Fitzroy High, Brunswick Secondary and Thornbury High. She said students from across the state had also registered interest.

“We’ve been inspired by school walkouts in the US and UK, and we want to make our voices heard. It’s important to show that there are millions who stand with Palestine,” the student said.

“Not all school principals have been happy to see us organising a walkout, but we’ve been getting some pretty incredible support from teachers and parents.”

Victorian shadow minister for education Jess Wilson and federal shadow education minister Sarah Henderson urged state and federal governments to make it clear to schools and students that attendance at the rally would not be an approved absence, and asked them to condemn the event.

“Students should not be used as political pawns by any group,” Henderson said.

“Our kids need to be in school. This protest is not only completely unacceptable, but risks heightening antisemitic behaviour across communities.”

Wilson said Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan must instruct schools that “this is not an approved nor endorsed reason for student absence”.

In response to questions from The Age, Clare said on Monday evening that “school students should be at school during school hours”.

“It’s incumbent on political and community leaders to turn the temperature down and do everything possible to maintain community cohesion,” he said.

Dr Colin Rubenstein, executive director of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, was critical of the walkout, saying: “Pro-Palestinian political activists should stay out of the nation’s classrooms.”

A spokesperson for the Education Department said schools are communicating with parents and carers about the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

“Schools also ensure students understand that any form of racism is not tolerated, and nor is any language likely to incite any form of racism, antisemitism or violence,” the spokesperson said.

All Victorian schools will be operating to their usual schedule on November 23.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/school-students-plan-walkout-in-support-of-palestine-20231113-p5ejog.html?js-chunk-not-found-refresh=true

https://www.facebook.com/FreePalestineMelbourne/posts/673006944960957

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913727 (141040ZNOV23) Notable: Wissam Haddad doubles down on sermons and spruiks Holocaust comparison

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Wissam Haddad doubles down on sermons and spruiks Holocaust comparison

ALEXI DEMETRIADI - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

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A Sydney cleric with ties to terrorists has doubled down on his recitation of Islamic parables about “killing Jews towards the ends of times”, saying it was the word of Muhammad and would “come to pass”.

Wissam Haddad, known as Abu Ousayd, who runs Al Madina Dawah Religious Centre in southwest Sydney, also compared the coverage of his sermons to Nazi newspapers during World War II “before the Jewish genocide” – a comparison slammed by political and religious leaders.

This publication last week revealed Mr Haddad’s sermons – where he said if Muslim countries spat on Israel, the “Jews would drown” – and how he was operating under an alias.

Mr Haddad used to run the Al Risalah Centre frequented by terrorists Mohamed Elomar and Khaled Sharrouf, of whose friendship he had boasted.

After The Australian visited the centre on Friday, and was told to leave by Mr Haddad, the cleric, who is subject to an ongoing NSW police investigation, encouraged Muslims to “soldier on” until Palestine had been “cleansed of Zionist filth”, standing by previous comments.

“Towards the end of times, when the Muslims will be fighting the Jews, the trees will speak,” Mr Haddad said on ­November 4, citing Islamic parables. “They will say ‘Oh Muslim, there is a yahud (Arabic for Jew) behind me, come and kill him’.”

Mr Haddad said given it came from scripture, he “believed every word”.

“And if he (Muhammad) said it, it will come to pass,” he said.

Mr Haddad then compared media outlets to Nazi propaganda. “The people doing the dragging (of the centre) are­ Zionist-backed agencies. The Nazis did the same to the Jews before the (Holocaust). The media is preparing the same ground, but this time for Muslim genocide.”

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913742 (141049ZNOV23) Notable: Horror compounded by those who refuse to condemn Hamas - "That so many in our community appear to be incapable of expressing compassion for innocent Israeli civilians murdered affects me deeply." - Kylie Moore-Gilbert, detained in Iran in 2018 and served more than two years of a 10-year sentence before being freed in November 2020 - theaustralian.com.au

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Horror compounded by those who refuse to condemn Hamas

That so many in our community appear to be incapable of expressing compassion for innocent Israeli civilians murdered affects me deeply.

KYLIE MOORE-GILBERT - November 14, 2023

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I sat down to write this piece several times in the weeks since October 7 but could never seem to get the words out.

Words fail me when trying to describe the debauched horror of that dreadful day, of the sickening barbarism in which Hamas terrorists raped, tortured, butchered and burnt innocent victims.

Even now, scrolling through the news headlines, I inadvertently pick up new, sickening details of the slow, drawn-out and creative ways in which these monsters played with their victims before they were slaughtered.

I spoke at a synagogue a few weeks back. The rabbi asked me to say a few words, perhaps about the hostages; about what it felt like to be taken hostage and be at the mercy of murderous Islamist fanatics. I mentioned the kibbutzes and the idyllic socialist ideal of their community ethos (now shattered). I mentioned the hedonism of Israeli young people, and their love of trance music (now poisoned by the events at the Supernova festival). I rambled, I held back tears.

I couldn’t mention the hos­tages. Every time I try to direct my brain to the claustrophobic maze of underground warrens, the darkness, the dampness, the endless loop of horrors playing in each person’s mind of the things they saw when they last saw sunlight, last breathed fresh air – I just can’t do it.

I avoid social media now. A few days ago I turned on the television and saw images of Palestinian mothers fleeing a hellscape of craters and ruins, clutching at their infants and teenage daughters. I imagined bombs raining down on my street in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. Which buildings nearby would be safe? If Hamas terrorists burst through my front door, where could I hide my baby to make sure she was spared whatever they would do to me?

That so many in our community appear to be incapable of expressing compassion for innocent Israeli civilians murdered in their beds or in their cars or at a dance festival affects me deeply.

It is possible to hold two truths at the same time, and oppose the senseless killing of civilians in both Israel and Gaza.

It is possible to acknowledge that Israel must act, that no nation would accept the atrocities of October 7, while demanding that Israel conduct itself to a standard higher than that of the savages who began the present conflict, knowing it would bring war upon Gaza’s innocents.

The Jewish community has not even really begun to process the collective trauma of that day.

But now that unspeakable horror is compounded by the silence of those who refuse to condemn Hamas in their denunciations of the inevitable war that followed.

By those who deface the images of the more than 200 toddlers, mothers, grandparents and Asian migrant workers taken by Hamas to pits deep in the earth, perhaps never to feel the sun on their skin again. By those who took to the streets and to social media before the blood had dried on the bodies of the more than 1200 dead, before Israel had even begun the devastating military response that was to come.

Glorying in and celebrating the massacre, wielding their anti-Semitism openly like a badge of honour in front of our nation’s most iconic landmark. Massing in front of a synagogue in the middle of Melbourne’s most Jewish suburb as Shabbat set in.

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19913769 (141100ZNOV23) Notable: High Court decision: Clare O’Neil says some freed detainees committed ‘disgusting crimes’ and hurt people still living in Australia

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High Court decision: Clare O’Neil says some freed detainees committed ‘disgusting crimes’ and hurt people still living in Australia

ROSIE LEWIS - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

Several sex offenders and three murderers are among the 81 people who have been freed from immigration detention following a landmark High Court ruling, with some having committed “disgusting crimes” that hurt people still living in Australia.

Under pressure to explain what Labor is doing to keep Australians safe, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles revealed on Tuesday that detainees who committed the most serious crimes must report daily to the government.

Mr Giles confirmed 81 non-citizens had now been released after the High Court decision, which overturned a 20-year precedent that had allowed the commonwealth to detain non-citizens under certain circumstances.

“I believe there are three murderers, there are several sex offenders,” he said in response to deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley, who asked how many convicted pedophiles, murderers and rapists were among the cohort.

Ms O’Neil told parliament the government argued against the release of the detainees, adding: “Some of these people have committed disgusting crimes. Disgusting crimes. Some of them have hurt people who are still here in our country and it is those victims that we care about.

“I can tell the parliament that there is one single focus and one single priority that we are using to manage the implications of the High Court’s decision and that is the community safety of the Australian citizens who elect us to this parliament.”

Mr Giles suggested some of the people who had been released were pedophiles and would be on a child sex offenders register, which restricted where they could live.

In a joint statement, Ms O’Neil and Mr Giles said border protection and law enforcement agencies “have been working to make sure that the toughest possible conditions are placed on these individuals”.

“Individuals required to be released by the High Court as a result of this decision have been subject to a range of strict, mandatory visa conditions. Such conditions include restricting types of employment, requiring regular reporting to authorities, and requiring released detainees to report their personal detail including their social media profiles, which we are actively monitoring,” the ministers said.

“Additionally, the government has imposed daily reporting requirements for those with the most serious criminal history. The government will also continue to work around the clock with agencies and law enforcement to uphold the safety of our community.”

State, territory and federal authorities may also impose additional restrictions on released detainees.

“For example in one state, a person who has been placed on an apprehended violence order is prohibited from residing at the family home, is not allowed within a certain distance from the protected person’s residence, work or school, and is not allowed to contact a protected person except through the use of a lawyer,” Ms O’Neil and Mr Giles said.

“The government is exploring further measures, including legislative and regulatory options, to ensure community safety as we work through the implications of the High Court’s decision noting the court is yet to hand down its reasons.”

Defending the Albanese government’s response to the decision, the ministers noted Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw briefed his state and territory counterparts in person on the outcome of the High Court’s decision, including on the expected numbers of individuals required to be released in each jurisdiction.

Operation AEGIS – run by the Australian Border Force and the Australian Federal Police – has been established to manage the overall response of federal agencies and state and territory police.

“This operation was established before any individuals other than the plaintiff in the High Court case had been released. This has ensured that people who are being released as required by the High Court, are moved into state and territory post-offending programs where appropriate,” Ms O’Neil and Mr Giles said.

“Each offender is being case managed and the AFP and ABF are providing updates on the joint operation to responsible ministers.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/high-court-decision-clare-oneil-says-some-freed-detainees-committed-disgusting-crimes-and-hurt-people-still-living-in-australia/news-story/fee995d08e20eeb0174c3a507a126e9a

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19919387 (150908ZNOV23) Notable: Moral outrage, simply untrue: Marcia Langton slams Blak sovereignty’s Palestine stance

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Moral outrage, simply untrue: Marcia Langton slams Blak sovereignty’s Palestine stance

PAIGE TAYLOR - NOVEMBER 15, 2023

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Distinguished Indigenous leader Marcia Langton has condemned the “Blak sovereignty” movement’s proposition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians feel solidarity with Palestinians as “simply untrue”, saying there is very little that is comparable in the two peoples’ situations.

Professor Langton offered a withering assessment of the pro-Palestinian strand of the Indigenous rights movement after Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni wore a pin with both Aboriginal and Palestinian flags on his jacket during a discussion of the Israel-Hamas war on ABC’s Q&A program on Monday night.

It follows a decision by independent senator Lidia Thorpe – the voice of the Blak sovereignty movement in parliament – to announce on social media last month: “I stand with Palestine!”

Jewish leaders such as Liberal MP Julian Leeser and prominent lawyer Mark Leibler were longtime and vocal supporters of the campaign for an Indigenous voice to parliament, which remote Indigenous communities mostly supported on referendum day but which the Blak sovereignty movement vocally opposed.

Professor Langton is the first Indigenous campaigner for the voice to write in the mainstream media about the Israel-Hamas war. Writing in The Australian on Wednesday, Professor Langton begins by describing the loss of thousands of lives in Gaza as unjustifiable. She condemns Hamas and says she is horrified and deeply saddened by the loss of lives in the Levant, the Israelis who were murdered and kidnapped by Hamas and the innocent Palestinians who are being used as human shields by Hamas.

“As an Indigenous Australian, I can have little effect in stopping these horrors but it is necessary to be clear about a few matters,” she writes.

“‘Blak sovereignty’ advocates have entwined two extraordinary propositions – one that is simply untrue and one that is a moral ­outrage.

“First, they claim that ‘Indigenous Australians feel solidarity with Palestinians’. This is false; it is the view of a tiny few, if put in those words. Most of us are aware of the complexity and that there is very little comparable in our respective situations, other than our humanity.

“Second, they refuse to condemn Hamas. I am aghast and embarrassed. They do not speak for me. I fear and loathe the possibility of further loss of life in this terrible crisis.

“I fear also that our multicultural society is being torn apart by people deluded about terrorism who have used their protests as a cover for anti-Semitism. Our Jewish and Palestinian communities deserve respect and compassion. I do not support the violence we have seen in Australia recently as a result of this conflict.”

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19919412 (150931ZNOV23) Notable: Jews and Palestinians deserve Indigenous respect: Marcia Langton - "“Blak sovereignty” advocates have entwined two extraordinary propositions - one that is simply untrue and one that is a moral outrage. First, they claim that “Indigenous Australians feel solidarity with Palestinians”. This is false; it is the view of a tiny few, if put in those words. Most of us are aware of the complexity and that there is very little comparable in our respective situations, other than our humanity. Second, they refuse to condemn Hamas. I am aghast and embarrassed. They do not speak for me." - Marcia Langton, chair of Australian Indigenous Studies, Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor, at the University of Melbourne - theaustralian.com.au

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Jews and Palestinians deserve Indigenous respect: Marcia Langton

MARCIA LANGTON - NOVEMBER 15, 2023

The loss of thousands of lives in Gaza is unjustifiable. I condemn Hamas. I am horrified and deeply saddened by the loss of lives in the Levant, the Israelis who were murdered and kidnapped by Hamas and the innocent Palestinians who are being used as human shields by Hamas.

As an Indigenous Australian, I can have little effect in stopping these horrors but it is necessary to be clear about a few matters.

“Blak sovereignty” advocates have entwined two extraordinary propositions – one that is simply untrue and one that is a moral outrage. First, they claim that “Indigenous Australians feel solidarity with Palestinians”.

This is false; it is the view of a tiny few, if put in those words. Most of us are aware of the complexity and that there is very little comparable in our respective situations, other than our humanity.

Second, they refuse to condemn Hamas. I am aghast and embarrassed. They do not speak for me. I fear and loathe the possibility of further loss of life in this terrible crisis. I fear also that our multicultural society is being torn apart by people deluded about terrorism who have used their protests as a cover for anti-Semitism.

Our Jewish and Palestinian communities deserve respect and compassion. I do not support the violence we have seen in Australia recently as a result of this conflict.

Hamas are terrorists; Palestinian Islamic Jihad are terrorists. The slogan “Not all Palestinians are Hamas” denies the fact that innocent Palestinians are being used as human shields by these terrorists.

No legitimate Aboriginal leader will permit our movement to be associated with terrorists. I can state confidently, based on my long experience in Aboriginal communities and giving advice to Indigenous corporations, that the majority Aboriginal view is a repulsion of terrorism

When 44 per cent of Gazans voted for Hamas in 2006, they precipitated a series of crises, such as the Israeli imposition of siege conditions, and with Iranian military aid to Hamas, their status as human shields.

Hamas has cleverly deluded the Israeli government and most of all Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters who aided and supported Hamas to avoid the two-state solution.

I am horrified by Netanyahu and the hard-right wing he represents, and urge Israelis to find a way to remove him as soon as possible. Israelis and the Palestinians will suffer while Netanyahu’s stance of totally opposing a two-state solution continues.

Australians like me can do little about the disaster unfolding in the Levant except to support our government to take a reasoned and principled position following international law. So far, that has been the case.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong have understandably tread a fine line with caution to avoid inflaming tensions that could so quickly spill over into a disastrous regional conflict.

I pray that world leaders who respect life and peace will find a way to end the hostilities as soon as possible. I must agree completely with Kon Karapanagiotidis, Melburnian of the Year, who spoke for the majority.

I grieve for the largest loss of Jewish life in a day since the Holocaust. I grieve for every Palestinian who has died since in the conflict. I grieve for the Israeli families whose loved ones are held hostage by Hamas. I grieve for the displaced, starving and terrified Palestinians who have been displaced in Gaza. Let us not lose our humanity.

Marcia Langton is chair of Australian Indigenous Studies, Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor, at the University of Melbourne.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/jews-and-palestinians-deserve-indigenous-respect-marcia-langton/news-story/c9320e0eada0d4f10159c469ec28e92e

https://twitter.com/Kon__K/status/1724404864476979349

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19919432 (150948ZNOV23) Notable: Video: Seven Labor MPs targeted with fake dead bodies in Gaza protest

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Seven Labor MPs targeted with fake dead bodies in Gaza protest

Annika Smethurst - November 15, 2023

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Victorian Labor MPs including federal ministers have been targeted with fake dead bodies dumped outside their electorate offices.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles, Immigration Minister Andrew Giles and Government Services Minister Bill Shorten were targeted by the protests.

Fake corpses were also placed outside the offices of Cooper MP Ged Kearney, Jagajaga MP Kate Thwaites and Wills MP Peter Khalil.

Signs saying “End the occupation” and “Free Palestine” were also stuck to their office windows across Melbourne and in Geelong.

In Tasmania, similar fake corpses were placed outside the electorate office of Housing Minister Julie Collins.

A group called No More Bodies in Gaza claimed responsibility for the actions on a new Instagram account that published its first post on Wednesday.

Spokesperson Linda, who asked this masthead not to use her last name as she worried her family would be targeted, said the group was made up mostly of parents and health professionals.

Linda said the decision for Wednesday’s action had come from parents chatting after school about the distressing images they’d seen coming from Gaza.

“We don’t have any sort of political connections. We’re just people who have been watching and been horrified,” she said.

Linda said No More Bodies in Gaza was calling for an immediate ceasefire and for “the occupation of Gaza and the West Bank to be ceased and for the lives of Palestinians to be held in the same regard and with the same sense of importance as every other human being”.

She said the group included Jewish members and that they didn’t seek to inflame tensions between any of Melbourne’s multicultural communities.

“This is not about Jewish people, this is about the Israeli military. I’m sorry for anyone who is disturbed, but it is disturbing,” Linda said.

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19919447 (151004ZNOV23) Notable: Western Sydney jumping castle firm says no to ‘Zionist school’s blood money’

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Western Sydney jumping castle firm says no to ‘Zionist school’s blood money’

CAMERON STEWART - NOVEMBER 15, 2023

A Sydney company that rents jumping castles has refused to rent games to a Jewish school, telling them “I don’t want your blood money, free Palestine”.

The company, Western Sydney Jump, reacted with hostility to a request on Tuesday from Masada College in Sydney for a quote for several outdoor games for a function this Friday. ­Someone claiming to be the owner of the company then posted the school’s email request and the owner’s reply on the company’s Instagram site, westernsydneyjump.

“There is no way I am taking a Zionist booking,” a woman from the company replied by email to the school’s principal. “I don’t want your blood money. Free Palestine.”

On the Instagram site the owner wrote: “I have owned my business for ten years. I have the right to decline any booking.”

The owner then posted a photo of two women allegedly linked to the college, one wearing a sweatshirt with Zioness on it. “They are Loud and Proud Zionists,” the owner wrote.

The post continued with a picture of a schoolteacher holding roses alongside a group of year 2 students with the words “Yesterday the same Zionist school celebrated ‘world kindness day’ LOL LOL LOL”.

On the following page were the words “Just to be clear, this is about Zionists. Not Jews. I have zero issue with the Jewish community.” The post continued: “You know what actually blows my mind … when Palestinians chant ‘From the River to the sea Palestine will be free!’ you find Zionists crying and saying ‘Look, they want us all dead’. But when Zionists actually say ‘flatten Gaza’, or ‘give them hell’, or ‘there should be no limit to the number of civilian casualties in Palestine’, they say nothing.

“Like one side is ACTUALLY asking for a genocide with words that describe genocide. And the other is asking for freedom and somehow they put those asking for freedom at fault.”

The school declined to comment but NSW Premier Chris Minns said: “This is outrageous. It’s not in keeping with any part of our multicultural community. I condemn it completely.”

Bradfield MP Paul Fletcher, whose electorate covers the St Ives school, told The Daily Telegraph he was “extremely disappointed by the way this business has responded”.

“Masada College is a remarkable school who contribute immensely to my local community,” Mr Fletcher said. “Racism has no place in our country and this behaviour should be condemned.”

David Ossip, president of the NSW Jewish Board of ­Deputies, said the reaction of the business was repugnant.

“I have spoken to the school following reports of this incident,” he said. “Posting photos of six and seven year-olds on social media and mocking them as Zionists is particularly sinister and disturbing. These are Australian kids, not participants in a foreign conflict.

“The business, through its correspondence and social media posts, has sought to dehumanise Jews and then boasted about its despicable behaviour. It is deeply repugnant and inconsistent with the values we hold dear as Australians,” Mr Ossip said.

Calls and emails to Western Sydney Jump were not returned.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/western-sydney-jumping-castle-firm-says-no-to-zionist-schools-blood-money/news-story/08382e05b0673713e12ea7d6781c3669

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19919457 (151016ZNOV23) Notable: Video: Pro-Palestinian school protest ‘will stoke division’: Rabbi James Kennard, principal of Melbourne’s largest Jewish school, Mount Scopus Memorial College

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Pro-Palestinian school protest ‘will stoke division’

CAMERON STEWART and RACHEL BAXENDALE - NOVEMBER 14, 2023

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Jewish schools in Melbourne have condemned plans to hold a “school strike for Palestine”, saying it would stoke division and ­potential violence in the community by directly exposing school ­students to anti-Semitism.

Their angry response came as the Victorian Labor government refused to oppose the pro-Palestine school protest, while the Victorian division of the Australian Education Union and federal and state Greens backed the event.

The “citywide school walkout” for Palestine on November 23 promoted by Free Palestine Melbourne has been opposed by both the federal Education Minister Jason Clare as well opposition education spokeswoman Sarah Henderson and her Victorian state counterpart Jess Wilson.

It comes amid a sharp spike in anti-Semitic incidents around the country caused by the Israel-Hamas war, and a violent clash ­between pro-Palestine protesters and pro-Israel supporters in Caulfield last Friday which led to an ­increased police presence in Melbourne’s Jewish suburbs.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan refused to give her opinion about whether the potentially divisive pro-Palestine protest should go ahead, saying it was her “expectation” that students would go to school but that attendance was a matter for individual schools.

“We live in a democracy. The ability to come together and hold a rally, a peaceful rally, depending on the issue that you’re concerned about, or the issue that you’re exercised about, that’s a fundamental principle of our democracy that must not and should not be banned, but it’s got to be conducted in a peaceful way,” she said.

But Rabbi James Kennard, principal of Melbourne’s largest Jewish school, Mount Scopus Memorial College, said the planned protest was of “deep concern” and should be opposed by both state and federal governments.

“Although some participants in the previous pro-Palestine rallies have been expressing their concern for innocent civilians, many others have displayed their hatred for Israel and for Jews,” Rabbi Kennard told The Australian.

“This has left the Jewish community feeling vulnerable and unsafe. There is every reason to fear that young people attending a “School strike for Palestine” would be exposed to the current surge in anti-Semitism, thereby increasing the division and even violence in the community.”

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Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924932 (160910ZNOV23) Notable: Labor ‘not selective’ on human rights, says Anthony Albanese as he confronts head-on allegations that he has failed to tackle anti-Semitism following the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel

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Labor ‘not selective’ on human rights, says Anthony Albanese in attack on Peter Dutton

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 15, 2023

Anthony Albanese has confronted head-on allegations that he has failed to tackle anti-Semitism following the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, declaring he stands with the nation’s Jewish community and also with Australian Muslims, including women threatened for “wearing hijabs in the streets”.

In an impassioned speech to parliament, the Prime Minister hit back at claims by Peter Dutton that the government had allowed community disharmony to fester by “speaking out of both sides of its mouth” since the terrorist attack.

He accused the Opposition Leader of “weaponising” anti-Semitism, branding his conduct as “beyond contempt”.

“Jewish Australians … are fearful at the moment. The sort of activity that is occurring is scaring them and I stand with them,” Mr Albanese said.

“But it is also the case that Arab Australians and Islamic Australians and women wearing hijabs in the streets of Sydney and Melbourne are being threatened, and I stand against that as well.

“The idea of selective human rights is one that I stand against.

“So I’m opposed to any innocent life being lost.”

After violent anti-Jewish protests in Melbourne and Sydney, Mr Dutton accused Mr Albanese of failing “to show the strong leadership required to overcome divisions within his own caucus, to stamp out anti-Semitism and bring our country together”.

“This Prime Minister had a solemn duty, Mr Speaker, to stand up and to make sure that his government spoke with one voice,” the Liberal leader told parliament.

“And what the Australian public has seen and what has shocked the Jewish community in recent weeks since 7 October is that this government is speaking out of both sides of its mouth.

“There are Jewish kids who are afraid to go to school. We got groups who are going into predominantly Jewish communities in our country to try to provoke them into a response.”

Mr Dutton linked the domestic fallout from the October 7 attack by Hamas to community concern over the government’s forced release of 83 detainees including murderers, rapists and pedophiles from immigration detention following a High Court decision.

He also criticised Mr Albanese’s decision to head to the APEC summit in San Francisco on Wednesday, accusing him of “flying off overseas again when he should be staying in this country to deal with the issue”. Mr Dutton called on Mr Albanese to remain in Australia to convene a national cabinet meeting, to address rising anti-Semitism together with premiers and chief ministers.

Mr Albanese pointed to his defence of section 18c of the Racial Discrimination Act which makes it unlawful to “offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate”.

The Coalition wanted to axe the law in the face of Jewish community opposition. He also highlighted his two decade-long campaign against the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement, championed by a local council in his electorate.

“I have a track record on this and I’m proud of it. But I also have a track record of standing up for the rights and for justice of Palestinian people,” Mr Albanese said.

“And I make no apologies for being a consistent supporter of a two-state solution.

“And I make no apologies for trying to bring communities together, not divide them. Because that’s the role of political leaders.”

Mr Albanese said every Australian prime minister since Paul Keating had attended APEC, except for one occasion when Julia Gillard was forced to return home early due to a family tragedy.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin welcomed the contributions of both leaders.

“The gravity of soaring anti-Semitism and the dangerous progression from sermons and chants to violence, vandalism and targeting of Jewish schools and neighbourhoods, warrants urgent action,” he said.

“We deeply appreciate the Opposition Leader’s impassioned stand against anti-Semitism and the Prime Minister’s consistent and clear position in support of our community. We hope this bipartisan support continues in the difficult weeks and months ahead, and results in meaningful action to defeat anti-Semitism before things spiral out of control.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/labor-not-selective-on-human-rights-says-anthony-albanese-in-attack-on-peter-dutton/news-story/3d85f2499d42c4031ab268c0b42fc5bf

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924943 (160917ZNOV23) Notable: Mark Regev: the man from Melbourne running Israel’s PR war - "There are two wars being waged from the upper floors of Israel’s Ministry of Defence in downtown Tel Aviv. The first is an old-fashioned ground war, already on the verge of routing Hamas from Gaza barely six weeks after the incursion began. The second is a PR war, one that cannot be settled with tanks and weapons. It’s a shadow campaign for hearts and minds taking place in lounge rooms across Britain, the US and even Australia, led in part by Mark Regev, a diplomat who’s spent more than 15 years serving as a bulwark for the Jewish state in times of calamity. Born in Melbourne, he’s been a familiar sight on television during all manner of skirmishes and ­sorties with Hamas, whose formidable propaganda machine is often run unchecked, he says, by news organisations covering the conflicts. “Hamas gets a free ride because of their ability, through coercion, to control the message coming out of Gaza,” Mr Regev told The Australian." - Yoni Bashan - theaustralian.com.au

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Mark Regev: the man from Melbourne running Israel’s PR war

YONI BASHAN - NOVEMBER 16, 2023

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There are two wars being waged from the upper floors of Israel’s Ministry of Defence in downtown Tel Aviv. The first is an old-fashioned ground war, already on the verge of routing Hamas from Gaza barely six weeks after the incursion began.

The second is a PR war, one that cannot be settled with tanks and weapons. It’s a shadow campaign for hearts and minds taking place in lounge rooms across Britain, the US and even Australia, led in part by Mark Regev, a diplomat who’s spent more than 15 years serving as a bulwark for the Jewish state in times of calamity.

Born in Melbourne, he’s been a familiar sight on television during all manner of skirmishes and ­sorties with Hamas, whose formidable propaganda machine is often run unchecked, he says, by news organisations covering the conflicts. “Hamas gets a free ride because of their ability, through coercion, to control the message coming out of Gaza,” Mr Regev told The ­Australian.

Israeli society is awash with opinion, home to a cutthroat press corps keen to tear strips off its political leaders. Commentators let loose on nightly talk-show panels and the newspapers are brimming with scathing editorials.

It’s a free society, Mr Regev says, and there’s a fundamental misunderstanding of what life is like, by comparison, under the Islamist regime in Gaza, a place of civil dysfunction where speaking to power can be punished severely.

Not long after being elected in 2007, Hamas rounded up its political opponents from the Fatah movement for summary execution, either gunning them down or tying their hands behind their backs and tossing them off tall buildings. There are consequences, Mr Regev says, from speaking too freely in Gaza, the threat of harm being why only one story ever emerges from a society always on message.

“Have you seen a single picture of a dead Hamas fighter? One? No,” he says. “Hamas through its brutal autocratic regime can control the sort of pictures coming out of Gaza.

“When someone in Melbourne hears a hospital director talking from Gaza, they don’t know it’s a Hamas-appointed hospital director. When they say we’re from the Palestinian Red Crescent, people in Adelaide think ‘that’s like our Red Cross’, but no, it’s not. Palestinian Red Crescent is not independent.”

What Mr Regev would like to see during such interviews is a type of disclaimer that makes the Hamas affiliation clearer to audiences, although mainstream news organisations have already shown a greater modicum of care with how they’re using information coming out of Gaza.

A turning point was the explosion at the Al-Ahli hospital during the opening week of the war. Hamas officials, knowing one of their misfired rockets caused the blast, seized the opportunity to blame Israel for the strike. It was an allegation that instantly created international headlines, many of which were later walked back once evidence emerged that Israel was not responsible. The reported death toll of nearly 500 people was also found to have been exaggerated, as were details of the strike ­itself; Hamas had said the hospital suffered a direct hit when in fact the rocket landed in a car park.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924961 (160925ZNOV23) Notable: Police backflip on decision not to probe bouncy castle business that refused Jewish hire

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>>128527

>>128564

>>128652

Police backflip on decision not to probe bouncy castle business that refused Jewish hire

ALEXI DEMETRIADI - NOVEMBER 15, 2023

Police have reversed a decision not to investigate a Sydney bouncy castle business that refused to deal with a Jewish school and then boasted about it on social media as the state government called the incident “un-Australian”.

On Tuesday, Western Sydney Jump reacted with hostility to a request from Jewish school Masada College in St Ives on Sydney’s upper north shore for a quote for outdoor games equipment.

The business’s owner posted the school’s email request and their reply on the company’s Instagram site. “There is no way I am taking a Zionist booking,” Western Sydney Jump business’s owner and founder Tanya Issa responded to the request. “I don’t want your blood money. Free Palestine.”

NSW police visited the school on Wednesday to conduct “inquiries” and after telling media publications that no action would be taken, have seemingly reversed that decision, with a spokeswoman confirming that inquiries were now “ongoing” into the incident and into the business.

It follows Premier Chris Minns and leading Jewish groups condemning Ms Issa’s stance.

“This is outrageous, it’s not in keeping with any part of our multicultural community,” Mr Minns said on Wednesday, before calling for the incident to be investigated by federal and state authorities.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin called the refusal “deplorable” and “un-Australian”.

“The school and community are distraught,” he said. “In their formative moments and years, these students are being excluded for being Jewish.

“It’s un-Australian and an affront for what we stand for.”

Mr Ryvchin said his colleagues at the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies were in contact with Mr Minns and the police, and “there should be consequences”.

He said he would be open to meeting with Ms Issa.

“I’m for giving people the benefit of doubt so I’d be happy to meet with her,” he said.

Mr Ryvchin reaffirmed concerns about a “record and unprecedented” rise in anti-Semitism that had moved from “words to acts” as he called for mandatory education in NSW schools.

“It (anti-Semitism) is the oldest and most violent form of racism, but still poorly understood,” said Mr Ryvchin, who feared Australia was now “standing on a precipice”.

NSW Liberal MP Matt Cross, the member for Davidson in which electorate the college sits, condemned the business.

“We live in a vibrant multicultural community; I condemn any business who refuses to do business with customers simply on the grounds of race and faith,” he said, throwing his support behind Masada and its “wonderful school community”.

The latest incident, although by no means comparable, follows this masthead revealing hate sermons at Bankstown’s Al Madina Dawah Centre, where clerics called for jihad and peddled anti-Semitic tropes.

NSW police have confirmed they were investigating the sermons; the Australian Federal Police have referred one sermon to an anti-terror squad.

After The Australian’s reporting, the Minns government revealed there were internal discussions about how best to strengthen section 93Z of the Crimes Act, which outlaws inciting violence, in a public act, against someone based on religion or race.

In October, after scenes at the Sydney Opera House where anti-Semitic chanting was heard, NSW police launched Operation Shelter to monitor protest and anti-Semitic activity.

Police have made 29 ­arrests leading to charges for a range of criminal offences as a result of the operation.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/police-backflip-on-decision-not-to-probe-bouncy-castle-business-that-refused-jewish-hire/news-story/437d8dfe2ff37c797957e179229baff4

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924973 (160937ZNOV23) Notable: Jewish Labor councillor Michelle Gray’s secret Hamas-apologist X account exposed

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>>128527

>>128611

>>128622

Jewish Labor councillor’s secret Hamas-apologist X account exposed

ALEXI DEMETRIADI - NOVEMBER 16, 2023

A Sydney Labor councillor has stepped down from the board of a Jewish pre-school after horrified parents discovered her secret Hamas-apologist Twitter account, which shared views absolving the group of war crimes and refuting that it was a terrorist organisation.

Michelle Gray, Labor’s Bondi ward councillor on Waverley Council, retweeted from an obscured X account tweets that “the criminals here are not Hamas - it is theWest” and suggested US Republicans were “easily more radical than Hamas”.

Ms Gray, who was elected to the council’s Bondi ward - one of the most populous Jewish communities in Sydney - in December 2021, converted to Judaism upon marrying her husband.

She had, until the account was exposed by angry parents, sat on the board of a Sydney Jewish preschool which The Australian has chosen not to identify for security reasons.

The account was deleted late on Wednesday upon a letter from parents to the school’s board and the synagogue to which the school is attached.

However, The Australian obtained screenshots of some of Ms Gray’s recent retweets before the account was deactivated.

“How dare Patricia (Karvelas) ask Nasser (Mashni) if he thinks Hamas is a terrorist org while he is talking about the genocide of Palestinians,” a tweet after Monday’s Q&A read, shared by Ms Gray’s account ‘Mitch’, @mishgray1.

“I had to delete a line from my last piece because there was still ‘doubt’ around who blew up a certain Gazan hospital,” another recently re-tweeted post read.

“These people are easily more radical than Hamas… the idea that Hamas are terrorists but these people who cheer the death of kids are not is absurd,” a tweet referencing Republican supporters, also re-shared by Ms Gray, read.

Another re-tweet after Monday’s Q&A took issue with a claim by Jewish community leader Mark Leibler that the “war crimes of the conflict are those of Hamas… utterly irresponsible of the ABC to amplify (his) bigotry” read.

The account also shared a video of former Greek Treasurer Yanis Varoufakis, who said “those trying to extract condemnation (from me) of Hamas will never get it”.

“The criminals here are not Hamas, it’s the West,” the tweet said.

Late on Wednesday, parents themselves found the tweets, putting together a petition calling for Ms Gray to resign.

“Dear members of the (school’s) board and the synagogue,” the petition read.

“We the parents are very distressed that a board member who was elected to represent the interests of the parents, is openly and publicly making anti-Israel statements.

“At a time when the Jewish community is forced to rally against increased levels of anti-Semitism and misinformation, it is appalling that a board member is fuelling the anti-Israel narrative.”

The Australian has since obtained what is understood Ms Gray’s response to that letter, signed by about 20 parents, where she stepped down and apologised for the “hurt caused”.

“I understand there is a parent petition and letter from the teachers asking for me to step down from the board,” Ms Gray wrote.

“I have differing views to many in the community on what is happening in Gaza and never thought anyone important would notice my thoughts amongst so many. I understand that my views don’t align with those of many in (the school and synagogue) communities so I am stepping down from my position on the board.

“I have loved helping (the school) for the last few years – this community means so much to me – and I am sorry for any hurt I have caused.”

Ms Gray told The Australian the Twitter account was a “big mistake” and she was “deeply sorry”.

“I’m deeply sorry for any pain I have caused, I know how much pain the whole community is in — I’m so sorry,” she said.

Ms Gray said she had “deep love” for the school and wider Jewish community, and the friendships she had there.

“I hate Hamas for what they did on October 7 to our Israeli family, my heart’s been breaking since,” she said, calling the tweets an “error”.

Ms Gray said she didn’t stand by the views in the re-tweets and that she was desperate for peace.

“Shouting into the echo chamber of Twitter is not conducive to that (peace), I’m really sorry,” she said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/jewish-labor-councillors-secret-hamasapologist-twitter-account-exposed/news-story/9f474d8674bc02079c69359e475aa9cc

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924983 (160945ZNOV23) Notable: Far-right threats against Lidia Thorpe force her to live out of home for months and spark a major security review, keeping the firebrand MP away from parliament

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>>128580

Threats force Lidia Thorpe into months-long exile from parliament

Paul Sakkal - November 16, 2023

Far-right threats against Lidia Thorpe have forced her to live out of home for months and sparked a major security review whose delay is keeping the firebrand MP away from parliament, an absence that exposed the government to a defeat in the Senate on its flagship industrial relations bill.

The independent senator said she had been in “exile” for more than four months, living out of a suitcase, and one of her three children and her dog had been put into separate accommodation following a series of violent threats.

She said these threats led to four people being arrested and charged, including former young Liberal and alleged neo-Nazi, Stefanos Eracleous, who fronted Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court last week, charged with creating a threatening video aimed at Thorpe.

His legal team were given another month to respond to the charges.

Australian Federal Police and parliament’s workplace support service have been working on a personal security plan to keep the far-left senator safe both at home and in public.

But Thorpe, who has been pressing for upgrades to her home securities, said the agencies had been slow and ineffective.

An AFP spokesperson said it could not talk specifically about Thorpe’s case, but the agency took seriously the safety of politicians.

She has not attended the past three weeks of parliament and has only been in the Senate for four of the past 28 sitting days, depriving Labor of her support on the crossbench as it seeks to pass bills with the support of the Greens plus at least some of the independents.

“I’m still not safe to appear in public and … the government has not provided me with a safety plan after four months in exile,” she said, noting that some security upgrades had been completed this week.

“They had four months to do this. All ministers and the PM know this. The AFP and Home Affairs have not done their job.”

Thorpe said Labor had been seeking her vote.

Several Labor, Coalition and Greens sources, speaking anonymously to detail Senate negotiations, said MPs made calls to Thorpe and her staff last week to seek her voting instruction on crossbench senators Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock’s bid to split Labor’s industrial relations bill.

Absent senators can inform the Senate on their voting position, allowing MPs to adjust voting numbers and reflect the vote of the absent person.

But Thorpe, despite being a union supporter likely to back Labor’s industrial legislation agenda, did not declare her stance.

Without Thorpe’s crucial vote, and with Lambie, Pocock and several others opposed, the government decided against putting the industrial relations matter to vote, meaning it lost “on the voices”.

“Lidia’s absence has turned into a really tricky problem for Labor. They’re genuinely trying to support her through her problems, but they need her back,” one Coalition senator said.

Thorpe said she hoped to be back at work as early as the end of the month. But if her security plan continued to be delayed, she may not return until next year.

“I miss my job. I want to make a difference in this country. I want to do the right thing and I’m being stopped from carrying out my duties as a senator. It’s shit,” she said.

The Victorian senator quit the Greens in February over the party’s decision to support the referendum. She led the “progressive No” campaign against the Voice throughout a year in which she repeatedly found herself in public altercations – including outside a Melbourne strip club and at Sydney Mardi Gras – which prompted the prime minister to question her wellbeing.

In October during the Voice referendum debate, a video circulating online showed two masked men denigrating Thorpe before burning the Aboriginal flag.

Thorpe says she has had new threats, including two videos and two letters.

“I was told to leave my house after a letter I received in parliament now probably five months ago,” she said.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/threats-force-lidia-thorpe-into-months-long-exile-from-parliament-20231116-p5ekfa.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924986 (160952ZNOV23) Notable: Air Marshal Darren Goldie recalled from his secondment as Government Cyber Security Co-ordinator over workplace complaint 'related to his time in Defence'

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>>128626

>>>/qresearch/19903684

Cyber tsar Darren Goldie ‘recalled’ over workplace complaint

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 16, 2023

The Albanese government’s cyber security agenda has been dealt a blow by the sidelining of its top cyber official, Air Marshal Darren Goldie, over a workplace complaint.

The Australian understands the complaint over alleged past behaviour was brought to the ­attention of Defence just over a week ago.

The Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell, ordered Air Marshal Goldie – one of the RAAF’s most senior commanders – to be recalled from his secondment as cyber security co-ordinator for the matter to be dealt with under ADF disciplinary processes.

The three-star commander’s removal from the key cyber role comes as the government prepares to release its long-awaited cyber security strategy this month, and follows the DP World hack last Friday that threw the ­nation’s freight movements into chaos.

The Defence Department said the workplace matter “related to his time in Defence”, but no further details were available.

“He is currently on leave. While the matter is under consideration it would be inappropriate to comment further,” it said.

“The welfare of our people remains our priority and it is requested that Air Marshal Goldie’s privacy is respected at this time.”

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil’s office said she had “been informed” that her top cyber ­official had been recalled.

She announced her department’s deputy secretary for cyber security Hamish Hansford would act in the role.

Opposition home affairs spokesman James Paterson said he was concerned by Air Marshal Goldie’s “incredibly abrupt departure”, and “the lack of transparency about why this was necessary”.

“We are in an extremely heightened cyber threat environment and the government promised we would have a co-ordinator to manage our response,” Senator Paterson said.

“They must swiftly resolve any issues relating to Air Marshal Goldie or appoint a permanent ­replacement.”

The respected commander and experienced C130 Hercules pilot was installed as the nation’s inaugural cyber security co-ordinator just five months ago.

He was lauded by Anthony Albanese at the time, suggesting a bright career ahead.

“Air Marshal Goldie has served his country with distinction for more than 30 years through various roles with the Royal Australian Air Force, most recently as Air Commander Australia,” the Prime Minister said.

“As the Air Commander Australia, Air Marshal Goldie has been responsible for building capability and resilience for the Royal Australian Air Force.”

His recall to Defence followed the Australian Signals Directorate’s release of its annual cyber threat assessment, which revealed a surge in cyber crime and warned the AUKUS nuclear submarine partnership had made Australia a prime target for state-sponsored hackers.

Defence Minister Richard Marles told parliament on Wednesday the “worsening cyber threat” would require greater investment in cyber security.

“We are seeing an increase in cyber crime,” he said. “We are also seeing an increase in the interests of state actors in our critical infrastructure including our defence, and that includes an increase in the interests in our work on acquiring a nuclear-powered submarine capability under the banner of AUKUS.”

As cyber security co-ordinator, Air Marshal Goldie was responsible for driving policy change to ensure Australia was in a strong position to respond to ever-­increasing cyber threats.

“The co-ordinator will lead national cyber security policy, the co-ordination of responses to major cyber incidents, whole-of-government cyber incident preparedness efforts, and strengthening of commonwealth cyber security capability,” the federal government said when he was appointed to the newly-created position.

Air Marshal Goldie clocked up 5000 flying hours as a pilot, including during operations in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan.

A decorated officer, he was awarded a Conspicuous Service Cross in 2012 and was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2015.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/cyber-tsar-darren-goldie-recalled-over-workplace-complaint/news-story/1c79ada1dfb7fe96d3b3975985495b33

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924988 (160957ZNOV23) Notable: Australian warship commander removed following alcohol incident - "A commanding officer of an Australian warship has been removed from his position while an inquiry begins into alleged "unacceptable behaviour" involving alcohol, which is prohibited when Navy personnel are at sea. Defence has confirmed the senior officer is no longer in command of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) vessel but is not releasing any other details about the matter due to privacy obligations. "There is no place for unacceptable behaviour or conduct within Defence," a defence spokesperson told the ABC in response to a series of questions. "All allegations of unacceptable behaviour are taken very seriously and investigated thoroughly following due process," the spokesperson added. Military sources say the captain is being investigated over allegations of "heavy drinking" while at sea, as well as an incident at an international event that caused "embarrassment" in front of United States Navy counterparts." - Andrew Greene - abc.net.au

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>>128659

Australian warship commander removed following alcohol incident

Andrew Greene - 16 November 2023

A commanding officer of an Australian warship has been removed from his position while an inquiry begins into alleged "unacceptable behaviour" involving alcohol, which is prohibited when Navy personnel are at sea.

Defence has confirmed the senior officer is no longer in command of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) vessel but is not releasing any other details about the matter due to privacy obligations.

"There is no place for unacceptable behaviour or conduct within Defence," a defence spokesperson told the ABC in response to a series of questions.

"All allegations of unacceptable behaviour are taken very seriously and investigated thoroughly following due process," the spokesperson added.

Military sources say the captain is being investigated over allegations of "heavy drinking" while at sea, as well as an incident at an international event that caused "embarrassment" in front of United States Navy counterparts.

"The RAN is trying to hide this entire episode and the usual procedures for transfer of command have been ignored," one figure familiar with the matter claims.

Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Mark Hammond, told the ABC he would not comment on the incident, but insisted his organisation was dealing with it appropriately.

"We have high expectations of our command teams, we have a high-performance culture, we have a strong reporting culture, and we have an accountability culture," he said.

"For privacy reasons and as a result of ongoing activities I won't be commenting any further."

Under current Navy regulations, consumption of alcohol while at sea is restricted to special occasions such as ANZAC Day, where sailors, but not officers, are given a limited "beer issue".

In 2018, the ABC revealed that the Navy had launched a crackdown on excessive alcohol consumption during shore leave, following "incidents involving a small number of Navy personnel in overseas ports".

Two years earlier, the ABC revealed the Navy had stood aside the commander of one of its largest ships while it investigated an on-board complaint from a female officer.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-16/australian-warship-commander-removed-following-incident/103107996

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19924989 (161001ZNOV23) Notable: Trial of military whistleblower David McBride, who leaked secret allegations of Australian war crimes, begins

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Trial of military whistleblower David McBride, who leaked secret allegations of Australian war crimes, begins

Markus Mannheim and Elizabeth Byrne - 13 Nov 2023

The trial of an Australian military lawyer who leaked secret information about alleged war crimes to journalists has begun in Canberra.

David McBride was an Australian Defence Force (ADF) lawyer who served in Afghanistan last decade.

He faces five charges of unlawfully stealing and disclosing classified information about alleged misconduct by special forces troops.

A large crowd of his supporters gathered outside the ACT Supreme Court before the hearing, urging the federal government to drop the prosecution.

Mr McBride addressed them on his way into court, saying: "Today, I serve my country."

"And the question I have for you, Anthony Albanese, is who do you serve?"

Monday's hearing was preliminary and focused on which evidence would be considered during the trial.

All parties acknowledge that Mr McBride disclosed classified information. The ABC used the information it received to report publicly on alleged war crimes.

The prosecution, led by Patricia McDonald, outlined the legal obligations that Mr McBride was under to not disclose the information.

She noted that Mr McBride said he was motivated to act by what he believed was the "over-investigation" of special forces troops — that is, he thought there was no basis for the ADF to investigate the troops' alleged misconduct.

She argued that military personnel like Mr McBride had no protection for disclosing secret information without authorisation, even if they believed "that doing so advances the public interest".

That would be "inimicable to the maintenance of discipline in the defence force", she said.

Defence lawyers told the court there was a difference between a person's duty to comply with orders made under defence instructions, and criminal actions.

Mr McBride's barrister Stephen Odgers said many authorities, including the High Court, had distinguished between duties that attract a disciplinary response and a criminal penalty.

The barrister said Mr McBride's understanding of duty was based on the oath of allegiance he made upon enlisting in the ADF, when he swore to serve Queen Elizabeth II.

Mr Odgers said that gave him a duty to act in the public interest.

The hearings are continuing, and a jury is expected to convene next week.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-13/david-mcbride-whistleblowing-trial-begins/103098900

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19925015 (161030ZNOV23) Notable: Video: International crime syndicate dismantled by NSW Police in large-scale operation - Strike Force Tromperie was created by NSW Police's State Crime Command to target an underworld network from Lebanon, with the assistance of Australian Border Force.

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International crime syndicate dismantled by NSW Police in large-scale operation

Jesse Hyland and Heath Parkes-Hupton - 15 November 2023

Police say they have dismantled "one of the most powerful" organised crime syndicates in Australia's history after a year-long investigation resulted in the arrests of 28 people.

Strike Force Tromperie was created by NSW Police's State Crime Command to target an underworld network from Lebanon, with the assistance of Australian Border Force.

The group has been linked to the alleged movement of more than $1 billion via guns, drugs, tobacco and money laundering.

This week, officers conducted raids at 37 properties across Sydney and arrested 24 people who have been charged with serious offences.

There have been 28 arrests overall during the investigation.

Overseas, police believe one of NSW's most wanted men, Bilal Haouchar, was also arrested in Lebanon.

It will be alleged he played a key role in the syndicate.

Mr Haouchar left Sydney in 2018, where he is wanted for kidnapping and drug offences.

NSW Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson said authorities were still waiting on confirmation of the underworld figure's arrest.

"We are still awaiting a formal response from the Australian Federal Police ... and we believe the 37-year-old has been taken into custody in Lebanon and we will work through that detail throughout the day."

His brother, Nedal Haouchar, was arrested at Sydney Airport this week.

The 40-year-old has been charged with with nine offences, including knowingly direct activities of criminal group, three counts of supply prohibited drugs, and five counts of deal with property proceeds of crime in excess of $4.4 million.

There were more than 450 officers involved in the raids in Sydney this week, at suburbs including Chipping Norton, Greenacre, Georges Hall, Roselands, San Souci and Granville.

Police uncovered two tonnes of drugs and precursors, 25 firearms, five of which were pistols, and 60 encrypted devices.

They were also large amounts of cash, designer jewellery and luxury cars that were seized.

Network 'plagued Sydney' for a decade

Police claim the organisation has been "significantly disrupted if not eliminated" as a result of the widescale operation.

Deputy Commissioner Hudson said officers employed "covert strategies" to dismantle the network.

"Those strategies that we’ve engaged have certainly eliminated the threat of this crime network," he said.

"Potentially, they were the biggest criminal network and enterprise in Australia at the current time."

Assistant Commissioner Michael FitzGerald alleged the group had "plagued Sydney for the past decade".

“This has been a 12-month intense investigation into a criminal network that emanates out of Lebanon," he said.

"This criminal network has tentacles throughout Sydney and New South Wales.

“They will no longer be a problem for New South Wales.”

Detective Superintendent Peter Faux, who led the investigation, added that NSW Police had used "absolutely every resource" to "infiltrate this organised crime network".

"This organisation was involved in drugs, firearms, the manufacture of drugs, acts of violence, industrial scale of movement via cryptocurrency around the world."

The investigation into the network is ongoing and more charges are expected to be laid.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-15/nsw-police-international-crime-syndicate-strike-force/103106844

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931265 (171431ZNOV23) Notable: Port Phillip Mayor Heather Cunsolo apologises for Carlisle Street mural after paintings by Mic Porter attract criticism of anti-Semitism - Police investigating anti-Semitic graffiti in nearby Clayton South

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>>128527

>>128611

>>128622

Mayor apologises for mural in Melbourne after paintings attract criticism of anti-Semitism

Beth Gibson and Yara Murray-Atfield - 17 November 2023

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A council in Melbourne's inner south-east will begin painting over a mural which has faced criticism for its resemblance to "highly offensive" anti-Semitic caricatures and tropes.

The paintings of faces — many with long noses — above a supermarket on Carlisle Street in Balaclava were completed in the past week.

They were painted as part of the Creative Graffiti Pilot Program, which is funded by the state government's Community Support Fund and run by six local councils in a bid to mitigate graffiti.

The Carlisle Street beautification project, which involves more than 20 properties, has been called "People of Balaclava".

The mural's creator Mic Porter is a well-known artist who previously painted along the St Kilda Lower Esplanade earlier in the year as part of a similar anti-graffiti project.

Liberal MP David Southwick, whose Caulfield electorate covers much of the Port Phillip Council area, said the most recent mural had "horrified" many residents.

"The first look at this mural, for me for and a number of constituents that have contacted me, is that it is highly offensive," Mr Southwick said.

Anti-Semitic caricatures of Jewish people, often with exaggerated noses, have long been used to spread anti-Jewish hate.

"It certainly reminds people horrifically of the horrors of the past and imagery like that that was used during Nazi Germany," Mr Southwick said.

"And I think, particularly when you've got Melbourne's largest Jewish community shopping … the last thing that they would want to do when they enter a supermarket is to see that kind of imagery on display."

Port Phillip Mayor Heather Cunsolo said the council had "received a large volume of community complaints regarding some portraits that form part of this series".

"We realise that regardless of the artist's intentions, the portraits have deeply upset and divided members of our community and for that we apologise," she said in a statement on Friday afternoon.

"When Council was first made aware that the artist's figures could be interpreted as Anti-Semitic, we reached out to several Jewish community leaders for advice.

"Whilst no concerns were raised, the current conflict has understandably heightened sensitivities and Council has no desire to add to the pain and distress many of our community are already feeling."

Cr Cunsolo said the removal would begin on Friday afternoon but it was expected it would take a few days to complete.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931318 (171443ZNOV23) Notable: Labor capitulates to Peter Dutton’s demands for urgent and far-reaching controls over criminals released from immigration detention following a High Court ruling, acknowledging serious community fears over those set free

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>>128546

>>128648

Humbled ALP backs in Peter Dutton’s principles on detainees

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 17, 2023

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Labor has capitulated to Peter Dutton’s demands for urgent and far-reaching controls over ­criminals released from immigration detention following a High Court ruling, acknowledging ­serious community fears over those set free.

With the Prime Minister overseas and the government facing one of its biggest political challenges yet, Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles agreed to all of the Coalition’s demands for tougher restrictions over the released ­detainees to ensure the swift passage of the emergency measures.

While rejecting Coalition demands for “preventative detention”, Labor agreed to make curfews and electronic monitoring of the released detainees mandatory, dropping its plan to make the measures subject to ministerial discretion.

The move came as the number of non-citizens released following last week’s High Court decision – who include convicted murderers, rapists and pedophiles – rose to 84.

A further eight detainees subject to adverse character assessments are also due to be released on bridging visas. The opposition warned of a “pipeline” of another 340 who could also be set free, but the government said the claimed number referred to all those ­detained for more than a year.

Labor also agreed to Coalition amendments to bar the released criminals from working with children, going within 150m of a school or childcare facility, or contacting their victims or their family members.

In another key Coalition amendment agreed by Labor, any of the released individuals who breach the new measures will face mandatory minimum sentences.

Mr Marles said his agreement with Mr Dutton, made while ­Anthony Albanese was at the APEC summit in San Francisco, was necessary to ensure the swift passage of the measures.

“It is fair to say that since the moment of the High Court’s decision, there has been a significant degree … of anxiety within the community about the release of these individuals into the community, given the nature of offences that many of these individuals had committed at points in time in their life,” he said.

“The basis on which we are doing this is because we are in a position where this must be ­resolved immediately. And so this has been done on the basis that it passes this parliament today, ­passes the Senate this afternoon, and passes this House later this evening.”

It’s understood Mr Albanese was advised on the negotiations as they occurred. The legislation was due to pass both houses on Thursday night before being rushed to the Governor-General for royal assent. The emergency measures, which were drafted overnight, followed the High Court’s decision last Wednesday to overturn a 20-year precedent allowing the commonwealth to detain non-citizens indefinitely under certain circumstances.

They followed Immigration Minister Andrew Giles’ claim earlier in the week that the released detainees were subject to “appropriate visa conditions”.

But, introducing the government’s emergency legislation into the parliament, Mr Giles warned “further responses may be required once we have received the High Court’s reasons for their decision”, which might not occur until next year.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931450 (171509ZNOV23) Notable: Indefinite immigration detention ruled unlawful in landmark Australian high court decision - Indefinite immigration detention is unlawful, the high court has held, in a landmark decision overturning a 20-year-old precedent. The result overturns the case of Al-Kateb, which had authorised indefinite detention of non-citizens without a valid visa even in circumstances where it is impossible to deport the individual - The decision could trigger immediate release of 92 people, with detention of 340 others also in doubt.

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>>128648

>>128664

Indefinite immigration detention ruled unlawful in landmark Australian high court decision

Decision overturns 20-year-old precedent and could trigger immediate release of 92 people, with detention of 340 others also in doubt

Paul Karp - 8 Nov 2023

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Indefinite immigration detention is unlawful, the high court has held, in a landmark decision overturning a 20-year-old precedent.

The result overturns the case of Al-Kateb, which had authorised indefinite detention of non-citizens without a valid visa even in circumstances where it is impossible to deport the individual.

On Wednesday the chief justice, Stephen Gageler, said that “at least a majority” of the justices agreed that sections of the Migration Act which had been interpreted to authorise indefinite detention were beyond legislative power.

The home affairs department believes the result could trigger the immediate release of 92 people who cannot be returned to their country of origin, including refugees and stateless persons, with the detention of a wider cohort of 340 people in long-term detention also in doubt.

In the first case heard since Gageler was sworn in as the chief on Monday, the high court ruled in favour of NZYQ, a stateless Rohingya man, who faced the prospect of detention for life because no country had agreed to resettle him, due to a criminal conviction for sexual intercourse with a 10-year-old minor.

The high court declared that because NZYQ had been detained when there was “no real prospect of his removal from Australia becoming practicable in the reasonably foreseeable future” his detention was unlawful.

It ordered he be released immediately, with the commonwealth to pay his costs. Gageler said the court’s reasons for its decision would be published “in due course”.

In submissions, NZYQ’s lawyers had argued the court must choose between an interpretation of the law that detention must cease if removal was not practically possible, or accept that “if it never becomes practicable to remove the detainee, the detainee must spend the remainder of his or her life in detention”.

Although NZYQ lost on the interpretation of the Migration Act, he won a separate constitutional argument that indefinite immigration detention breaches the separation of powers between executive government and the judiciary because it is punitive.

NZYQ’s case was supported by the Australian Human Rights Commission and the Human Rights Law Centre.

HRLC acting legal director, Sanmati Verma, said that “indefinite detention ends today”.

“This has life-changing consequences for people who have been detained for years without knowing when, or even if, they will ever be released,” she said.

“The government must respect the constitutional limits of detention and act immediately to free people who have been indefinitely detained.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931479 (171517ZNOV23) Notable: Dutton pushes for more laws to re-detain those released by High Court ruling

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>>128665

>>128664

Dutton pushes for more laws to re-detain those released by High Court ruling

Paul Sakkal and Olivia Ireland - November 17, 2023

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton is pushing Labor to re-detain a cohort of non-citizens who cannot be deported, as immigration lawyers representing the newly released group of 84 claim new laws passed on Thursday to curtail the group may be unconstitutional.

After the High Court last week ruled against the indefinite detention of foreigners unable to be deported, ministers claimed for days they needed to see the court’s reasons before introducing new legislation. But on Thursday, the government rushed through laws to impose curfews and electronic monitoring devices on the released detainees.

Labor’s proposed laws were strengthened even further when the government caved into demands by Dutton to impose stricter conditions on the group.

Despite the court’s decision, Dutton argued the government could create further laws to put the group – a portion of whom committed serious crimes including murder and sexual offences – back into detention.

“If I was writing the government’s policy, these people would be back in detention because we’re talking about some pretty serious criminals, and the first and foremost thought here is for the victims,” Dutton said on Nine’s Today program.

“We had one hour to draft these amendments and there would have been a lot more that we would have done, but time was not on our side yesterday, but we ended up getting some changes and I hope that that gives us a chance of making the community a little bit safer.”

Opposition immigration spokesman Dan Tehan, speaking on ABC TV, said the opposition believed it was possible to use preventive detention legislation to re-detain the group.

“You can set up a new regime and that’s what the government should have been looking at since June, when it became clear there was a possibility that the High Court would rule the way that it did,” he said.

However, lawyer Alison Battison, who represents 16 members of the released cohort, said the laws passed on Thursday, which do not re-detain the individuals, were “potentially challengeable” in the courts.

“They are a disproportionate response to a particular cohort – the only thing they have in common is being impacted by a High Court decision,” she said.

University of Canberra professor Kim Rubenstein also said the law could be subject to challenge if the measures were seen as punitive.

“If a regular Australian citizen released from fulfilling a criminal sentence was not subject to equivalent conditions on parole, then there’d be a question, I think, of whether this is punitive,” she said.

Education Minister Jason Clare has defended the government’s handling of the High Court ruling, arguing the parliamentary response was the fastest he has seen in his 16 years.

Speaking on Seven’s Sunrise program, Clare said the passing of emergency legislation on Thursday night, which places stricter conditions on the detainees, was parliament “working at its best, the way the parliament should work”.

“You’ve got to know what you’re dealing with, so you make sure that you write laws that work,” he said.

“Certainly people are dirty with this decision [to not re-detain the convicted criminals], if we had our way these people would still be locked up.”

Clare disagreed the government was unprepared for the High Court decision, saying they needed to see the decision before writing legislation.

But after a parliamentary victory on Thursday, in which Labor conceded Dutton’s hardline approach to monitoring the individuals was appropriate, the opposition leader went on the attack again on Friday morning.

Dutton argued the government had months to anticipate the High Court outcome that indefinite immigration detention was illegal and should have had legislation ready last week when the decision was handed down.

“The government had since June to draft this legislation. Earlier in the week, on Monday and Tuesday, they were saying there’s no legislation that can fix it … in the end, it turns out that there was legislation that they could pass,” he said.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/dutton-pushes-for-more-laws-to-re-detain-those-released-by-high-court-ruling-20231117-p5ekq9.html?btis=

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931514 (171530ZNOV23) Notable: Bikie gangs, violent sexual offences: Crimes of dozens of detainees revealed - Twenty-seven of the foreigners whose indefinite detention was quashed by a landmark High Court decision are cases that have been referred to immigration ministers over several years under the category of “very serious violent offences, very serious crimes against children, very serious family or domestic violence or violent, sexual or exploitative offences”.

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>>128665

>>128664

Bikie gangs, violent sexual offences: Crimes of dozens of detainees revealed

Olivia Ireland, James Massola and Paul Sakkal - November 17, 2023

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Twenty-seven of the foreigners whose indefinite detention was quashed by a landmark High Court decision are cases that have been referred to immigration ministers over several years under the category of “very serious violent offences, very serious crimes against children, very serious family or domestic violence or violent, sexual or exploitative offences”.

Documents tabled in the Senate late on Thursday evening revealed a “dashboard” prepared for the government about the detainees before the High Court decision last week, which ruled indefinite immigration detention was illegal, overturning a 20-year precedent. The court’s reasons have not yet been released.

The categories show why detainees had their visas cancelled on character grounds. Not every detainee in each category would have been convicted in Australia and some may have been convicted overseas.

As Opposition Leader Peter Dutton on Friday pushed the federal government to return those who have been released back into detention, Labor MPs questioned the handling of the case by Immigration Minister Andrew Giles and Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil and the government’s failure to draft new laws ahead of the High Court’s decision.

The case was brought by a stateless Rohingya man who lost his Australian visa after being convicted of raping a 10-year-old boy.

The individual’s legal team argued it was unconstitutional for the Commonwealth to hold a person with no prospect of leaving Australia. High Court Chief Justice Stephen Gageler AC ruled in agreement, which meant another 91 people who had exhausted their appeals against indefinite detention could apply for release.

Two high-profile lawyers, David Manne and Alison Battisson, who represent people released following the decision, both flagged a possible constitutional challenge to laws rushed through parliament on Thursday to impose tough restrictions on those released.

In San Francisco for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation conference, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese defended the passage of those laws, which included a string of additional restrictions dictated by Dutton, including mandatory curfews, electronic monitory and minimum sentences for detainees who re-offend.

“I was fully involved, we’ve responded to an issue back in Australia that’s a result of a decision by the High Court of Australia,” Albanese said. “We’ve responded appropriately.”

The document tabled in the Senate reveals that 40 of the 92 detainees were detained in NSW, 24 are from Victoria with the balance in Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT.

Afghanistan (18), Iran (17), Sudan (10) and Iraq (7) are the top four source countries for the detainees. In total, the cohort of 92 people come from 23 countries while nine are considered stateless.

The document also reveals 21 of the detainees have been referred to Home Affairs ministers for cyber crimes, serious and high-profile organised gang-related crimes and being high-ranking members of outlaw motorcycle gangs.

Shadow home affairs minister James Paterson, who requested the release of the document, seized on the details which showed “just how dangerous some of these now-released detainees are”.

“And the government has known this for weeks. It is shocking they weren’t ready to protect the community from what their own advice shows were very serious non-citizen criminals.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19931551 (171541ZNOV23) Notable: Video: Military lawyer David McBride pleads guilty to unlawfully sharing secret allegations of Australian war crimes

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>>128661

Military lawyer David McBride pleads guilty to unlawfully sharing secret allegations of Australian war crimes

Elizabeth Byrne and Markus Mannheim - 17 November 2023

Former military lawyer David McBride has given up his fight against charges he broke the law by leaking classified material to journalists.

McBride's trial began this week but was delayed by his failed appeal against a preliminary decision that he had no legal duty to defy orders that were against the public interest.

The ACT Supreme Court also knocked back a bid to include as evidence documents the defence team believed were vital to their case.

In court today, McBride pleaded guilty to three charges of stealing and unlawfully sharing secret military information.

His plea put an end to a trial before a jury, which was scheduled to be selected on Monday.

The court heard this week that, while serving as an army lawyer in Afghanistan, McBride became concerned by what he believed was the "over-investigation" of alleged misconduct by special forces troops.

Prosecutor Patricia McDonald noted that McBride believed the investigations were "excessive" and undermined the soldiers' safety.

The whistleblower handed classified documents related to these investigations to journalists Sam Clarke, Chris Masters and Dan Oakes.

The ABC later published what became known as The Afghan Files, which detailed Australian troops' alleged illegal killings in Afghanistan.

McBride had planned to defend himself against the charges by relying on the oath of service he swore to the Queen when he joined the military.

His lawyer, Stephen Odgers, argued that this oath gave McBride a duty to reveal information if it advanced the interests of the Australian public.

But Justice David Mossop found McBride had no legal right or obligation to breach orders, and his actions were not justified by public interest.

This preliminary ruling would have shaped what the jury was told, when it convened next week.

Outside court, defence lawyer Mark Davis foreshadowed a possible appeal.

He noted the judge's decisions meant important trial evidence would have been heard in secret, away from the jurors, dealing McBride's defence "a fatal blow".

"That limits what we can say to the jury on his behalf, in terms of his duty as an officer and the oath he took to serve the interests of the Australian public," Mr Davis said.

"Well, the ruling was he doesn't have a duty to serve the interests of the Australian people; he has a duty to follow orders.

"And that's a very narrow understanding of law in our view, that takes us back to pre-World War II."

Mr Odgers had sought to challenge the preliminary rulings in the ACT Court of Appeal, where he also sought to postpone the case.

He told the court there was no question his client had committed military offences.

"The question is whether or not, in the case of a criminal offence … there is the same duty to obey orders," Mr Odgers said.

He told the court that, if McBride lost this appeal, he might be forced to plead guilty.

ACT Chief Justice Lucy McCallum noted the long delays in hearing the case, saying the charges related to events six to 10 years ago.

She rejected the appeal, saying if the trial was delayed further it might not be run until later next year.

McBride is expected to be sentenced early next year.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-17/military-whistleblower-david-mcbride-trial-leaked-adf-war-crimes/103119808

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19936175 (181247ZNOV23) Notable: NSW government rejects federal MP Julian Leeser's call for ban on 'anti-Semitic' car convoys

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>>128527

>>128611

>>128622

NSW government rejects federal MP Julian Leeser's call for ban on 'anti-Semitic' car convoys

Helena Burke - 18 November 2023

The New South Wales government has rejected calls to ban vehicle convoys amid tensions between the state's Jewish and Palestinian communities.

Over the past week, two motorcades with vehicles displaying Palestinian flags have travelled through Sydney, with a third convoy planned for Saturday evening.

Federal Berowra MP Julian Leeser wrote a letter to the NSW premier on Friday saying the convoys were causing the Jewish community to become "unsettled and scared", calling for them to be outlawed.

"I believe drivers who participate in vehicle protests or convoys should have their vehicles impounded just like drag racers, and their licenses cancelled," Mr Leeser wrote.

"These convoys are anti-Semitic and totally out of keeping with the state's multicultural character. It is beholden on the government to ban such conveys.

The state government publicly rejected Mr Leeser's demands on Saturday.

"The specific proposal would see us really intervene legally in people driving across the city. That's not the way the government intends to deal with this," Road Minister John Graham said.

"Having said that, I am concerned about these convoys … this is simply adding to the tension."

'No strategic purpose'

Last Saturday, a motorcade of about 30 motorcycles and cars displaying Palestinian flags drove from Lidcombe in Sydney's west to Coogee in the city's east.

The group was met by people carrying Israeli and Australian flags, and a large police presence.

Some men drove past the Israeli supporters waving their Palestinian flags and calling out from cars before police appeared to redirect the motorcade in order to separate the two groups.

On Wednesday, a brawl broke out between five teenagers in Bondi after several cars flying Palestinian flags drove through the area.

A 19-year-old Jewish man was later charged with affray and use offensive implement with intent to commit indictable offence.

Police say the four other teenagers will be dealt with in accordance with the Young Offenders Act.

Palestine Action Group organiser Fahad Ali publicly condemned the convoys last week.

"This is a deliberately provocative action. It has no strategic purpose," Mr Ali wrote in a post on X.

"No-one I know in the Palestinian community is on board with this."

Mr Ali said the motorcades have undermined the pro-Palestine movement in Australia.

"If things go awry, who is going to bear the consequences? We are. Palestinian organisers and the movement as a whole," he wrote.

Anti-hate speech laws reviewed

The NSW government is focused on strengthening anti-hate speech laws rather than banning convoys.

Premier Chris Minns announced on Tuesday that he was reviewing section 93Z of the Crimes Act, which makes it illegal to "intentionally or recklessly threaten or incite violence" against someone based on their race, religion, sexual orientation or other characteristics.

Since the law was introduced in 2018, not a single person has been convicted under section 93Z.

"If you're going to have a law on the books saying racial vilification and hate speech is not allowed in NSW, then it can't be toothless," Mr Minns said.

"There is naked racism in our community, and incitement to violence… something has got to change."

Mr Graham said the government's review may include considerations about laws surrounding the conduct of people involved in convoys.

"It's not out of the question that the issues that Julian Leeser is raising might be part of that review — that is to look at more effective ways of enforcing that law," he said.

"But our focus will be on anti-vilification, hate speech and anti-Semitism rather than stopping people move across the city."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-18/nsw-government-rejects-call-for-ban-car-rally-protests/103121968

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19936185 (181250ZNOV23) Notable: Jewish leaders have condemned as “ill-informed and inflammatory” comments from independent “teal” MP Zoe Daniel that Israel cannot “bomb” its “way to peace”.

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>>128527

>>128611

>>128622

Jewish leaders slam Zoe Daniel over ‘ill-informed’ comments

RACHEL BAXENDALE and TRICIA RIVERA - NOVEMBER 17, 2023

Jewish leaders have condemned as “ill-informed and inflammatory” comments from independent “teal” MP Zoe Daniel that Israel cannot “bomb” its “way to peace”.

The condemnation came as hundreds of worshippers and community members congregated at Caulfield South’s Central Shule on Friday night for a gathering of “love, song, prayer and positivity”.

The Shabbat service followed last week’s violent clashes outside the synagogue after anti-Israel protesters decided to hold a demonstration in the Jewish heart of Melbourne.

Ms Daniel made her comments in an ABC Radio National interview on Friday morning, which followed a Matter of Public Importance speech in parliament on Thursday evening, in which she appealed for “social cohesion rather than opportunistic ­attempts to divide and inflame ­directly affected communities”, in a dig at Peter Dutton.

In Friday’s interview she said Israel “has to adhere to inter­national law and the rules of war”.

“I think in some ways (the Israeli government) has not been. If they’ve been targeting hospitals … if that’s what’s happened, it’s a war crime. Pure and simple,” the Goldstein, Melbourne, MP said.

“Not allowing humanitarian supplies in, again, doesn’t adhere to international law and you’ve heard the government say repeatedly ‘Israel has a right to defend itself, but the way it does it has to be very careful,’ and I agree with that.” She added: “You can’t bomb your way to peace.”

Ms Daniel also said politicians had to be “aware” of their words, as tensions and anti-Semitism continue to rise across Australia.

“I think that we have to be really aware of every word that comes out of our mouths, not only in that chamber but in the public arena that has consequences,” she said.

Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council executive director Colin Rubenstein said her comments were “ill-informed and inflammatory”.

“As Ms Daniel herself said, Australian politicians should ‘be really aware of every word that comes out of our mouths’ at the moment. She needs to take her own advice,” he said.

“Ms Daniel needs to better educate herself about both International Humanitarian Law and the situation in Gaza. Israel is of course allowing in humanitarian supplies, with around 100 trucks a day coming in from Egypt, and is promising to allow in as many as the UN can arrange. It has also instituted daily humanitarian pauses, and made an exception to the fuel embargo to ensure relief trucks can continue to operate.

“Meanwhile, International Humanitarian Law is very clear that hospitals cease to have total protected status if used for military purposes – and Israel has provided ample evidence Hamas is doing that in Gaza’s hospitals. A combatant is still required to provide warnings and minimise harm to doctors and patients before taking action within hospitals – and Israel is doing both those things.”

Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler said: “If Western governments take a position that when terrorist organisations like Hamas use civilians as human shields, including in hospitals – that it gives those organisations immunity – we will in effect incentivise terrorist organisations to continue to engage in such barbaric behaviour.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/jewish-leaders-slam-zoe-daniel-over-illinformed-comments/news-story/4393a974561d6ee214033cb8fdae2058

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19936337 (181346ZNOV23) Notable: United States appeals legal liability after marine burned by exploding barbecue in Darwin - The US government has gone to the Supreme Court of Appeal arguing it cannot be sued over an explosion at a Darwin army base that left a marine seriously injured.

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United States appeals legal liability after marine burned by exploding barbecue in Darwin

The US government has gone to the Supreme Court of Appeal arguing it cannot be sued over an explosion at a Darwin army base that left a marine seriously injured.

Fia Walsh - November 13, 2023

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The United States government is appealing a judge’s decision that it can be held liable for an explosion at a Territory army base which left a marine with burns to almost a third of his body.

Former bomb technician Evan James Williamson was on deployment at Darwin’s Berrimah base when he was injured attempting to light a faulty barbecue in August 2019.

He is suing the US and Australian governments, along with two contractors, for a total of $7.8m, alleging officials knew the barbecue had a gas leak.

The US has taken the matter to the Supreme Court of Appeal, arguing Associate Justice Vince Lupino was wrong when he refused to dismiss the case earlier this year.

Lawyers for the US government argue it is immune from prosecution in Australian courts which have no jurisdiction over a foreign government’s military matters.

“What is being attempted here is simply so unusual and so untenable that no-one would ever have dreamt it up and thought it a possibility,” Dr Christopher Ward SC said at Monday’s hearing before three Supreme Court judges.

He said while the explosion clearly had “serious consequences” it was entirely a matter of the relationship between “a foreign sovereign and members of that foreign sovereign’s military” to be dealt with “by that foreign sovereign’s law”.

For American marines to suddenly become subjected to Australian law, Dr Ward argued, was “an impossible position for troops deployed worldwide”.

“They’d have to create new equipment to meet the standards of whatever country they were in,” he said.

“International law has always identified, at a very, very fundamental level, this to be the absolute immunity from which there has been no derogation.”

Dr Ward argued that while the explosion happened at a social event, the barbecue should be considered to be a piece of military equipment and the incident was no different from a tank crash or a parachute malfunction.

“It’s a failure no different to other failures at the base,” he said.

Mr Williamson’s lawyer Gerard Mullins KC argued the United States was not immune and its interpretation of the law was too broad.

Mr Mullins said legislation relating to visiting forces’ “terms of service” referred not to all aspects of service but simply to the length of time one was deployed.

One of the contractors being sued, Ventia Australia, told the court they had an interest in the US remaining liable.

Lawyer Hamish Baddeley said Ventia would argue members of the US Defence Force had been negligent, and claimed to have an email showing the barbecue had been cleared for use a day before the incident.

“We say the US is squarely in the gun,” he said.

A decision on the appeal will be handed down at a later date.

https://www.ntnews.com.au/truecrimeaustralia/police-courts-nt/united-states-appeals-legal-liability-after-marine-burned-by-exploding-barbecue-in-darwin/news-story/159db8d7322f13b0cbc856cbb556ecad

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19936398 (181357ZNOV23) Notable: ‘Where is the human right for the victim’s family?’ A father’s anguish as killer walks free - It took a full week for Shaariibuu Setev to be told that the Malaysian hit man who murdered his daughter Altantuya had been released from Villawood Detention Centre on the orders of the Australian High Court and was now a free man.

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>>128627

>>128665

>>128664

‘Where is the human right for the victim’s family?’ A father’s anguish as killer walks free

AMANDA HODGE - NOVEMBER 18, 2023

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It took a full week for Shaariibuu Setev to be told that the Malaysian hit man who murdered his daughter Altantuya had been released from Villawood Detention Centre on the orders of the Australian High Court and was now a free man.

When the devastating news finally came it was not delivered by Australian authorities in Mongolia, from where the 72-year-old professor of film studies has never stopped fighting for justice for his daughter, nor from Malaysian or Mongolian authorities, but rather from this newspaper – a deeply unwelcome revelation for both parties.

“I never imagined Australia would release him,” the shattered father told The Weekend Australian on Friday as he struggled to digest the fact her killer, Sirul Azhar Umar, was now reunited with his 24-year-old son in Canberra while Altantuya’s own son of the same age had been robbed of his mother.

Sirul was one of 84 people released from Australian immigration detention – convicted murderers and rapists among them – after the High Court ruled indefinite detention to be unlawful, sparking safety concerns and a public backlash.

The ruling has left Professor Shaariibuu struggling for words.

“Where is the human right for the victim’s family? We are right here, we are still alive and suffering. The victim’s pain should count for something,” he said.

“There is a Mongolian embassy in Australia, an Australian embassy in Mongolia. Noone has contacted me. When will the Australian government send an apology to me?”

“I really wonder why Australia releases a murderer. It makes me think all the murderers of the world can go to Australia, spend time in immigration detention and eventually be released and become free men.”

He drew no comfort from emergency legislation passed by federal parliament on Thursday mandating curfews and electronic bracelets for those released.

All those released from detention have been barred from contact with children and victims of their crimes, and face up to five years jail if they breach their visa conditions.

Professor Shaariibuu dismissed those measures as “just for show”.

“I feel so disappointed in Australia. Is this the democracy you’re teaching to Mongolia, a young democracy?”

Sirul Azhar Umar, a former elite police bodyguard for top Malaysian government figures, has always maintained he abducted Ms Shaariibuu from outside the Kuala Lumpur home of her ex-lover in October 2006 on the orders of powerful people.

It has long-been speculated those people feared the model and translator could reveal details of bribes allegedly paid by a French defence firm to her ex-lover Razak Baginda – a key government negotiator in the $US2 billion submarine deal and a close confidante of the then defence minister Najib Razak, who would go on to become Prime Minister.

Along with a second commando, Azilah Hadri, the terrified Mongolian mother-of-two was driven to a forest on the edge of Kuala Lumpur and shot twice in the head as she begged for her life. Her body was blown up with military-grade explosives.

The two men had been expecting a cash reward for their efforts. Instead, they were convicted of murder and sentenced to death, though Sirul fled to Australia where he was detained in early 2015 by immigration officials and locked up in Villawood.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/19936502 (181421ZNOV23) Notable: Released detainees to wear ankle bracelets indefinitely, as lawyers condemn ‘disproportionate’ response

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>>128665

>>128664

>>128667

Released detainees to wear ankle bracelets indefinitely, as lawyers condemn ‘disproportionate’ response

Lisa Visentin and Miki Perkins - November 18, 2023

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Ninety-three foreigners released from indefinite detention as a result of a landmark High Court decision will be forced to wear electronic monitoring devices indefinitely under strict visa conditions condemned by human rights lawyers as extra-judicial punishment.

Immigration Minister Andrew Giles confirmed that mandatory curfews and electronic monitoring would apply to the entire cohort of people released from immigration detention “for as long as they remain in Australia”, as emergency laws came into effect on Saturday.

He said a “significant number” of the 93 people – a confirmation that an extra nine people had been released in addition to the 84 already free as of Friday – had been convicted of serious criminal offences, but declined to say exactly how many.

David Manne, the executive director of Refugee Legal which is representing a number of the people formerly indefinitely detained, said the new conditions “fundamentally failed on all fronts” and condemned the laws as having been rushed through in a political panic without proper scrutiny.

“My view is that they are extraordinary extra-judicial powers, which in our country are only meant to be reserved for the most extreme situations, and only independent scrutiny by a court,” he said.

Describing the new laws as “essentially cutting and pasting” anti-terrorism control orders into the migration act, Manne said that in spirit and effect they would seriously deprive the liberty of people once released, when the High Court had just ruled the deprivation of their liberty was unconstitutional.

Human Rights for All director Alison Battisson, who is representing 18 of the released people, said the indefinite application of the measures was a “disproportionate response and not based on individual risk assessments” and would likely be challenged in the courts.

“There are people in the cohort who have never been to jail and don’t have a criminal record,” Battisson said, referring to one of her clients who had breached an apprehended violence order and received a good behaviour bond.

Giles on Saturday morning said law enforcement agencies had begun implementing the visa restrictions measures.

“From today, our agencies will be implementing requirements on individuals to report details of people they live with, travel plans, associations with clubs or other organisations, financial information, or any contact they have with individuals or groups alleged to be involved in criminal activity,” Giles said.

The conditions also include curfews, a ban on convicted child sex offenders from working with children and from being within 200 metres of a school, childcare centre or daycare centre. Violent offenders and those convicted of sexual assault will be banned from contacting their victims.

Breaching the conditions carries a mandatory minimum sentence of one year and a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

“These measures are mandatory conditions that we’re imposing on individuals in this case. They will continue to be imposed as long as they are in the country,” Giles said. “Our response has been based on legal advice to put in place proportionate and lawful measures to keep the community safe.”

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