After Hanukkah massacre, Australians losing faith in religious coexistence

A majority of Australians now doubt that people of all faiths can peacefully coexist, following Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre.

By World Israel News Staff

More than half of Australians say they are less confident that people of all faiths can live safely in the country following the Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre, according to a new survey commissioned by the Combat Antisemitism Movement.

The survey found that 52% of respondents had lost confidence in Australia’s ability to provide a safe environment for people of all faiths after the attack.

The research also pointed to worsening perceptions of attitudes toward Jewish Australians.

Some 30.5% of respondents described those attitudes as negative, compared with 28% in a similar survey last year.

Concerns over social cohesion were also reflected at the local level. According to the findings, 47% of Australians said municipal councils should be doing more to combat hatred directed at Jewish communities.

Meanwhile, 23% said racial or ethnic tensions in their local areas had worsened over the past year, up from 18% in 2025.

Only 21% said local councils were doing enough to address religiously motivated hate, down sharply from 40% last year.

The percentage of respondents who said they had seen or heard about an antisemitic incident in their local area also rose, reaching 16%, compared with 12.5% in 2025.

The findings were released ahead of a national summit on antisemitism and social cohesion scheduled to take place in Bondi Beach this November.

Hundreds of mayors, councilors, senior local government officials, faith leaders and community representatives are expected to attend the Local Government Summit on Social Cohesion and Antisemitism, which is being co-hosted by CAM and Waverley Council with support from the New South Wales government.

The two-day event is intended to focus on practical measures, including expert briefings, workshops and exchanges between local officials.

Organizers say participating councils will be asked to develop action plans for their own communities.

The summit will mark the first time representatives from all three tiers of Australian government are expected to formally convene for a national gathering focused on antisemitism.

It follows the inaugural Australian Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism, held on the Gold Coast last year.

CAM Public Affairs Advocate for Australia Sheina Gutnick, whose father Reuven Morrison was murdered in the Bondi attack, said local leaders needed to play a larger role in addressing public concerns over safety.

“Although there has been a coordinated response from all levels of government in response to Bondi, local leaders need to step up and address the fraying feeling of safety in the community,” Gutnick said.

“This is personal for me,” she added. “My father was killed because hatred was allowed to grow unchecked. I would rather spend this year working with councils to turn this moment into action, so that by the first anniversary, we can point to meaningful change.”

Gutnick said local governments were in a strong position to confront hatred at the community level.

“Local councils are the front line of defense against all hate,” she said. “We urge every mayor and councilor to speak out and step up — and to join our summit to learn how their peers around the world are tackling these rising threats.”

Waverley Mayor Will Nemesh also argued that municipal governments had a direct responsibility to strengthen social cohesion.

“As the level of government closest to the community, councils have an obligation to take meaningful and decisive action on challenging antisemitism and hate, and fostering stronger social cohesion,” Nemesh said.

“The devastating terror attack at Bondi clearly highlighted the importance of local leadership,” he added.

“When hate arrived on our doorstep, it was the local community and its council that stood up first and responded to the unprecedented and unimaginable challenge. But even before December 14th, our Council declared that ‘never again’ would be more than a motto, and instead a call to action to guide our steadfast efforts to stamp out antisemitism. Every council in Australia has the same responsibility and [the upcoming] summit is where we learn how.”