Terror assault: Is Australia now tightening gun legal guidelines? | EUROtoday

After the assault on a Jewish pageant in Sydney that left 16 lifeless, the Australian authorities is contemplating tightening gun legal guidelines. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese introduced that he would suggest a restrict on the variety of weapons and a assessment of present licenses. At the identical time, his authorities is going through accusations of not having carried out sufficient to fight anti-Semitism.

“People’s circumstances can change. People can become radicalized over time. Licenses should not be granted in perpetuity,” Albanese mentioned. The assault on Sunday triggered horror in Australia: it was the worst case of gun violence within the nation in round 30 years.

Investigators have recognized the 2 attackers as father and son. The 50-year-old father was shot by emergency providers on the scene. The 24-year-old son was caught and is in hospital with severe accidents. New South Wales Police Chief Mal Lanyon mentioned the daddy was a member of a looking membership. He had a gun possession card, which allowed him to personal lengthy weapons.

After a taking pictures spree within the Tasmanian metropolis of Port Arthur in 1996, strict gun legal guidelines had been launched in Australia. However, there have been latest media experiences of concern about an growing variety of weapons within the nation.

Authorities consider Sunday’s assault was an anti-Semitic terrorist assault. The two gunmen opened hearth on a celebrating crowd with lengthy weapons on the favored Bondi Beach on the primary day of the eight-day Jewish pageant of lights, Hanukkah. 15 folks had been killed, together with a ten-year-old lady. 38 folks remained in hospital with accidents on Monday. The precise motive of the attackers continues to be unclear.

Albanese confirmed that Australian home intelligence had investigated the son six years in the past for hyperlinks to a Sydney-based cell of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group. The police didn’t verify native media experiences that two IS flags had been present in one of many attackers’ automobiles, citing ongoing investigations.

“We have seen a clear lack of leadership in protecting Jewish Australians,” criticized opposition chief Sussan Ley. “We have a government that sees anti-Semitism as a problem to be managed rather than an evil to be eradicated.”

Prime Minister Albanese mentioned: “There is no place for this hatred, this violence and this terrorism in our country.” An assault on Jewish Australians is “an attack on all Australians”. He referred to as on his compatriots to gentle a candle at house as an indication of solidarity with the Jewish neighborhood. “We are stronger than the cowards who did this,” he mentioned.

Speaking to the press, Albanese declined to reply on to statements made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who accused Australia of failing to take decisive motion towards anti-Semitism. “This is a moment of national unity,” Albanese mentioned. “This is a moment when Australians must come together. That’s exactly what we will do.”

The Prime Minister laid flowers on the Bondi Pavilion on Sydney’s fashionable Bondi Beach and remembered the victims. Flags throughout the nation had been flown at half-mast. Many folks donated blood for the injured.

Australia and different international locations formally acknowledged the state of Palestine this yr within the wake of the devastating Gaza struggle. Netanyahu accused Albanese of including “oil to the anti-Semitic fire.”

The Jewish group Australian Jewish Association additionally made severe accusations on X: “How many times have we warned the government? Not once did we have the feeling that they listened.” As the Gaza War progressed, Israel got here underneath growing worldwide criticism. At the identical time, a wave of anti-Semitism might be noticed worldwide, during which hatred towards Jews typically culminates in assaults on folks or Jewish establishments similar to synagogues.

In Australia, there was an arson assault on a synagogue in Melbourne in December 2024 and it went up in flames. Albanese spoke of an anti-Semitic crime that had put human lives in peril. Authorities blamed Iran and expelled the Iranian ambassador. Still, Israeli politicians accused the Albanese authorities of being too lenient on anti-Semitism and never doing sufficient to guard the native Jewish neighborhood, which numbers about 120,000 folks.