An Australian Federal Police task force is chasing so called criminals for hire as it investigates a spate of anti-Semitic attacks in Sydney and Melbourne. The AFP commissioner says there is intelligence of overseas payments but so far no links between various incidents can be found.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Federal police are investigating whether overseas actors paid criminals in Australia to carry
00:08out some of these anti-Semitic incidents, but at this stage there have been no links
00:13found to overseas terrorist organisations or foreign governments, nor have any links
00:19been found between these incidents.
00:21There have been at least eight serious ones in Sydney and Melbourne over the past three
00:26months.
00:27ABC News understands there's been some frustration within intelligence circles and at the state
00:33police level when it comes to the AFP's decision to reveal possible overseas funding links.
00:40However, AFP Commissioner Rhys Kershaw says at the moment they're looking at all possible
00:44avenues for motivations.
00:47The AFP's investigative lines of inquiry are looking at whether some individuals have been
00:52paid to carry out some anti-Semitic acts in Australia.
00:58We believe criminals for hire may be behind some incidents.
01:04So part of our inquiries include who is paying those criminals, where those people are, whether
01:11they are in Australia or offshore, and what their motivation is.
01:17As we know a snap national cabinet meeting was held yesterday evening that was in response
01:22to an anti-Semitic attack on a childcare in Maroobra in Sydney's east.
01:28The government, they've been under sustained political pressure both from the coalition
01:32and also the Israeli government over their response.
01:36They've argued essentially that the Prime Minister hasn't done enough to clamp down
01:40on anti-Semitism.
01:42We have heard from the opposition leader Peter Dutton this morning and he's calling for more
01:46information.
01:48When did the Prime Minister find out that there were foreign players?
01:51Are these state actors or are they organised crime groups or are they anti-Semitic groups?
01:59What did the Prime Minister know?
02:00And frankly it just gives, shines a spotlight on the fact that the Commonwealth government
02:06should have deployed resources much earlier to what is a rolling series of terrorist incidents
02:11in our country.
02:12So what's been the reaction from the community, Liv?
02:16Well we've heard from a coalition of groups this morning calling for social cohesion.
02:21So in a joint statement from the Human Rights Watch, the Jewish Council of Australia as
02:26well as the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, they essentially don't want these
02:31events to be politicised.
02:32And I'll read you from that statement now, they've said political leaders should condemn
02:37recent hate crimes and acts of discrimination, however they should not seek to politicise
02:41racist attacks for political gain, nor should political leaders cause further community
02:46division or vilification in their response to these attacks.
02:51The government would argue that they've taken several measures to try and clamp down on
02:55this rise in anti-Semitism that we're seeing across Australia.
02:59And should Parliament return early next month, they do want to introduce new legislation
03:04to crack down on hate speech.
03:07That is of course if an election isn't called before then.