Global condemnations pour in after Jews gunned down at Bondi Beach Hanukkah event

Leaders and officials from countries around the world united Sunday in a chorus of condemnation after a terror shooting at a Jewish event in Australia killed at least 15 people.

US President Donald Trump called the shooting “a purely antisemitic attack” during a Christmas celebration at the White House. “That was a terrible attack… And that was an antisemitic attack, obviously.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on X that the US “strongly condemns” the deadly attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday in which gunmen fired on a Hanukkah event.

“Antisemitism has no place in this world. Our prayers are with the victims of this horrific attack, the Jewish community, and the people of Australia,” Rubio continued.

According to authorities, at least 15 people were killed, as well as one of the two gunmen who opened fire at an event attended by some 2,000 Jews from the Sydney area, as estimated by Jewish groups. Around 38 people were wounded, of whom at least 13 were in critical condition, including two police officers.

King Charles III, who is the monarch of the British Commonwealth, including Australia, said he and his wife “are appalled and saddened by the most dreadful antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish people attending the Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach.”

“In times of hurt, Australians always rally together in unity and resolve. I know that the spirit of community and love that shines so brightly in Australia — and the light at the heart of the Hanukkah Festival — will always triumph over the darkness of such evil,” said Charles in a statement.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese decried the terror attack as “an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism.”

“This is a targeted attack on Jewish Australians on the first day of Hanukkah, which should be a day of joy, a celebration of faith — an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism that has struck the heart of our nation,” Albanese said in a televised address.

“An attack on Jewish Australians is an attack on every Australian,” he said.

Israeli leaders blamed Albanese and his government in their reactions to the attack.

Hours after the attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted in a speech that he had sent a letter in August to Albanese, charging Canberra with pouring fuel “on this antisemitic fire.”

Paraphrasing his letter, Netanyahu said Albanese’s policies, which include recognizing a Palestinian state, encouraged “the Jew-hatred now stalking your streets. Antisemitism is a cancer. It spreads when leaders stay silent. You must replace weakness with action.”

In an oblique attack on the Australian government, Netanyahu said that “we will continue to denounce those who do not denounce, but encourage. We will continue to demand that they do what is demanded of leaders of free nations. We will not give up, we will not bow our heads, we will continue to fight as our ancestors did.”

Since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, sparking the Gaza war and setting off a tidal wave of antisemitism across the globe, Australia’s 120,000-strong Jewish community has been among the hardest hit.

Over the past year, Jews in Australia have seen synagogues, schools and homes firebombed, two nurses threatening to kill Jewish patients in their hospital, and the discovery of a trailer filled with explosives said to have been intended to cause a mass-casualty event at a Sydney synagogue.

Hanukkah “should be a time of celebration and joy,” said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in response to the deadly shooting. “The news that the Bondi Beach attack was an antisemitic terrorist attack against Jewish families at a Hanukkah event is sickening.”

“France extends its thoughts to the victims, the injured and their loved ones,” wrote French President Emmanuel Macron on X. “We share the pain of the Australian people and will continue to fight relentlessly against antisemitic hatred, which hurts us all, wherever it strikes.”

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said she was “shocked” by the “appalling act of violence.”

She added in a post to X: “Europe stands with Australia and Jewish communities everywhere. We are united against violence, antisemitism and hatred.”

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on X that she felt “profound grief regarding the dramatic news arriving from Sydney.”

“By once again firmly condemning all forms of violence and antisemitism, Italy expresses its own condolences for the victims,” she added.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, also in a post to X, said: “I am deeply shocked by the terrorist attack in Sydney – an act of hatred directed against all Jews worldwide on the first day of Hanukkah.”

“My thoughts are with the families of those murdered, the injured and the Jewish community,” he added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X that his country “stands in solidarity with Australia in the face of the brutal terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, Sydney, which targeted the Jewish community.”

“Terror and hatred must never prevail — they must be defeated everywhere and every time,” he said.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “horrified by the antisemitic terror attack,” in a post to X.

“Canada stands with the people of Australia and Jewish people everywhere in sorrow, and determination never to bow to terrorism, violence, hatred and intimidation,” he added.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on X that he was “horrified” by the “heinous deadly attack.”

“My heart is with the Jewish community worldwide on this first day of Hanukkah, a festival celebrating the miracle of peace and light vanquishing darkness,” Guterres added.

Qatar, Iran, PA join condemnations, don’t mention Jews

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry put out a statement expressing its “condemnation and denunciation” of the attack, without mentioning antisemitism or that the attack had targeted Jews.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterates the State of Qatar’s firm stance against violence, terrorism, and criminal acts, regardless of the motives or reasons,” said Qatar’s statement.

Iran also condemned the attack.

“We condemn the violent attack in Sydney, Australia,” wrote Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei in a Persian-language post on X, adding, “Terrorism and the killing of human beings, wherever it is carried out, is unacceptable and condemned.” Baqaei made no mention of antisemitism.

The Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry joined in on the condemnations, saying it rejects all forms of violence and terrorism, without acknowledging that the shooting attack had targeted Jews or a Hanukkah event. It did add a condemnation of “Israel’s ongoing killing of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank.”

The ministry said it “reiterates its firm rejection of all forms of violence, terrorism and extremism, which contradict humanitarian values,” expressing in a statement its “full solidarity” with “friendly Australia.” Australia recognized a Palestinian state in September alongside Britain and Canada in a historic shift in decades of Western foreign policy.

In August, Albanese revealed that Iran was suspected of being behind a pair of 2024 antisemitic arson attacks, calling the actions “dangerous acts of aggression” designed to undermine his country’s social cohesion.

Two weeks ago, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) said the country had seen 1,654 antisemitic incidents during the 12-month period from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025 — about five times the annual average recorded in the decade prior to the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack.

The previous year, the first after the October 7 attack, saw an even higher 2,062 incidents, ECAJ noted. Australians now feel that antisemitism has become mainstreamed throughout all aspects of national life, the group said.

The country’s decision in August to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly further aggravated the growing sense of alienation among the country’s Jewish community and sparked a sharp war of words between Albanese’s government and Israeli officials.