The incendiary turns on fire to the Australian synagogue with faithful inside; No injuries were reported

A incendiary caught fire to the door of a synagogue of Melbourne and forced the congregation to flee on Friday, seven months after the criminals destroyed a synagogue in the same Australian city with an accelerated fire that left an injured worship.

A man sprayed the double doors of the Hebrew congregation of the center of East Melbourne and turned on it around 8 PM, Victoria Police said in a press release on Saturday. Around 20 worshipers share a meal to mark the Jewish rest day Shabbat evacuated through a back door and no one was injured, police said.

Firefighters extinguished the fire, which was contained in the main entrance, police said. The photos show damage to the front doors.

Police said the incendiary walking through a nearby park before entering the synagogue land. After putting the fire, he fled the scene on foot, police said. It has not been identified.

Victoria’s Prime Minister Jacinta Allan said that the incident and the previous attack were designed to “traumatize Jewish families.”

“Any attack against a place of worship is an act of hate, and any attack against a place of Jewish cult is an act of anti -Semitism,” he said in a statement.

The acting Victoria Police commander, Zork Dunstan, described the fire as a serious crime. The Department’s Terrorism Security Investigation Unit leads the investigation, police said in a press release on Saturday, but the matter “has not been considered a terrorism incident.”

“I would like to make it very clear that we recognize that these crimes are disgusting and abhorrent. But at this stage, we are not declaring that this is a terrorist incident,” Lunstan told reporters.

“In the course of our investigation, we will examine the intention and ideology of the people involved, or person, to determine if this is in fact terrorism. At this time, we are categorizing it as a serious criminal incident and responding accordingly,” he added.

A terrorism statement opens the investigation to more resources and can lead to positions that lead to longer prison sentences.

The president of the synagogue, Danny Segal, asked the broader Australian community to support his congregation.

“We are here to be at peace, you know, we are here for everyone to live together and have a new beginning in Australia, such a beautiful country, and what they are doing is not fair and is not right, and as Australians, we should stand up and everyone should stand up,” Segal told journalists.

Police say they are looking to talk to the man seen in the area.

The Victoria Police published an CCTV image of a man they say they are interested in talking about the incident. They did not identify man as a suspicious.

The unidentified man is described as in his 30 years, with a beard and long hair. He wore a dark blue or black sweater, black pants and a black hat. CCTV’s photo shows it by carrying a large black bag.

Protesters harass diners in a restaurant owned by Israel

Also in the center of Melbourne on Friday night, around 20 masked protesters harassed diners in a restaurant owned by Israel. A Miznon restaurant window broke. A 28 -year -old woman was arrested for hindering the police.

The president of the Anti-Defamation Commission, Dvir Abramovich, a leading opponent of anti-Semitism in Australia, said the diners were terrified when the group sang “Death to FDI“Referring to Israel’s defense forces.

“Melbourne, for one night, ceased to be a safe place for the Jews,” Abramovich said.

Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece condemned the incidents of the synagogue and the restaurant.

“These criminal acts against a Melbourne synagogue and an Israeli business are absolutely shocking,” Reece said. “All of us as a community need to face him.”

Israel’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sharren Haskel, condemned the attacks, saying that it was “another reminder how far the crimes of racist and antisemy hatred in the heart of Australia” have extended in a statement on X.

“Israel is with you,” Haskel added.

Victoria Police said their detectives are investigating whether there is any link between the restaurant incident and the synagogue fire. They are also investigating a “fire attack and criminal damage” to a business in Greensborough, a suburb of Melbourne.

Red Islamophobic, Islamaphobic Attacks Australia

A wave of antisemy attacks has shaken Australia since the Hamas assault on October 7, 2023, Hamas to Israel triggered the war in Gaza.

Jewish and Muslim Organizations and Hate Researchers have recorded drastic peaks in incidents fed with hate in both groups. Last year, the Australian government appointed special envoys to combat anti -Semitism and Islamophobia in the community.

Last December, two masked men hit the Adass Israel Synagoga In the southeast of Melbourne. They caused extensive damage when extending an accelerator fluid with brooms throughout the building before turning it on. A worshiper suffered minor burns.

No charges have been presented for that attack, that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese blamed anti -Semitism.

The Victorian joint anti -terrorism team, which includes the Victoria State Police, the Federal Police and the main national spy agency in Australia, said the fire was probably a politically motivated attack.

• Terrorism
• Melbourne
• Hamas
• Australia
• Anti -Semitism
• Fire