The daughter of a victim killed in the Bondi Beach attack has told an Australian inquiry that antisemitism has become more visible and socially acceptable since the deadly incident.
Sheina Gutnick gave emotional testimony on Monday as the first witness before Australia’s royal commission into antisemitism, which was established following a shooting at a Hanukkah event in December that killed 15 people.
The attack involved gunman Sajid Akram, 50, who was shot dead at the scene by police. His son, Naveed Akram, who is also accused of involvement, was critically injured and later transferred from hospital to prison. He has been charged with 59 offences, including 15 counts of murder and one terrorism-related charge.
Gutnick told the public hearing in Sydney that she had received messages after the attack saying she should also have been killed. “I saw people trying to excuse and justify the events as only anti-Zionist,” she said, describing how unsafe she has felt in Australia since the incident.
Her father, Reuven Morrison, was among those killed. He reportedly tried to intervene during the attack by throwing objects at the gunmen in an attempt to stop them.
Gutnick said she had noticed a significant rise in antisemitic behaviour since October 2023. “I felt as though antisemitism was allowed to come into the open,” she said. “All of a sudden it was socially, morally acceptable for antisemitic comments to be made in public discourse.”
She described her father as “deeply proud” of being Australian. He had fled the former Soviet Union at the age of 14 and later met her mother at Bondi Beach. Despite her childhood memories of the location, she said Bondi now felt “complicated” for her.
Another witness, identified only as AAL, also gave evidence, describing Australia as his home since arriving from South Africa in the 1980s. “I treated Australia as home from the day I stepped off the plane,” he said, visibly emotional. “I have to think very seriously whether this is the country for my grandchildren.”
The royal commission said it had received nearly 7,500 submissions so far. The current public hearings, running until 15 May, are focused on personal experiences of antisemitism.
Former High Court judge Virginia Bell, who is overseeing the inquiry, recently released an interim report with 14 recommendations, including stronger gun control measures and expanded security arrangements for Jewish events.
She noted a “sharp spike” in antisemitism that mirrors trends seen in other Western countries and said it was linked to events in the Middle East. “It’s important that people understand how quickly those events can prompt ugly displays of hostility towards Jewish Australians simply because they’re Jews,” she said.
The commission is expected to deliver its final report on the anniversary of the attack.