THE HON MARK DREYFUS KC MP
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
CABINET SECRETARY
MEMBER FOR ISAACS
E&OE TRANSCRIPT
ABC TV NEWS BREAKFAST
PARLIAMENT HOUSE
MONDAY, 9 DECEMBER 2024
SUBJECTS: Syria; Melbourne Synagogue Attack.
MICHAEL ROWLAND: State and federal counter-terrorism police will meet today to continue investigations into the firebombing of a Melbourne synagogue that has left the local Jewish community, in fact a lot of Australians, shocked. We're joined now by the Attorney-General, Mark Dreyfus, in Canberra. Mark Dreyfus, very good morning to you.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL MARK DREYFUS: Good morning Michael.
ROWLAND: I want to talk about the attack on the synagogue in just a moment. But as you're the Attorney-General and a member of Cabinet's National Security Committee, back to that previous story, our top story, what does the Australian Government think about what has happened in Syria?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: We're monitoring the unfolding events in Syria, Michael. No one will mourn the end of the murderous Assad regime in Syria. We wish for peace there. We hope that there will be respect for life and that Syria can get to a peaceful, prosperous future. But clearly, these are unfolding events, unfolding as we speak.
ROWLAND: Indeed they are. Let's talk about the fire attack on the synagogue in Melbourne. What have you been briefed as to where the various police investigations are at the moment?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: This was an atrocious act, Michael, which has shocked Australians. It's caused distress and fear in the Jewish community in Melbourne, in my community, and what we now need to do is unite as a country to make sure that not only this never happens again, but that antisemitism is ended. The Victoria Police, assisted of course by Commonwealth agencies, has been working night and day on this since the early hours of Friday morning when the dreadful event happened. The Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police, who are leading this investigation, are meeting today and there may be more developments emerging from that meeting.
ROWLAND: Do you believe it was an act of terrorism?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: As the Prime Minister said yesterday, this was an event that struck fear into the hearts of everybody in Melbourne, across Australia, particularly causing fear and distress in the Jewish community. I'll be waiting to hear more from Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police after their meeting today.
ROWLAND: Okay, so you don't want to call it an act of terrorism, what, because you don't want to compromise the police investigation?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: I think it's important always, I'm the Minister for the Australian Federal Police, Michael, I think it's always important that we let police do their work. We let Commonwealth agencies who are assisting Victoria Police in their work to do just that, and let them make the announcements.
ROWLAND: Okay, so for those describing it as an act of terrorism, including of course the Prime Minister, are they getting ahead of themselves?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Well, I think what the Prime Minister said yesterday was right, that this is an event that has struck fear into the hearts of Australians, and particularly into the hearts of the Melbourne Jewish community. But as to the formal technical descriptions, let's leave that to police, because they're the ones that are conducting the investigation.
ROWLAND: Okay. Now, just to be clear, the Prime Minister said that, but he went on to say his personal view was terrorism.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Yes, and he's doing that because he's recognising, as I do, because I feel the same set of emotions, he's recognising just how much fear and distress this caused. It's a shocking event to see an act of arson with what was described, with the pouring of accelerants and this deliberate setting of a fire that burned down this synagogue. It's hard to imagine that this horrible event has occurred in Australia in 2024.
ROWLAND: Now what do you make of the strident criticism over the weekend from Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has linked the firebombing to, in his words, your government's extreme anti-Israel position?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: I'm sure he's got his own reasons for speaking in the way that he did, but we are focused on, first of all, Australia adopting good positions in international relations. The vote that the attention has been drawn to in the United Nations was one in which Australia joined more than 150 other countries, including our Five Eyes partners - the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand - and it's directed at us joining, recognising, the limited amount that Australia can do, us joining international efforts to get to peace, to get to an end to violence across the Middle East, but particularly in Gaza, and that's our objective here.
ROWLAND: Strong words though from Benjamin Netanyahu, your government having an extreme anti-Israel position. So, in your view, is he wrong based on what you just said?
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: He's absolutely wrong. I respectfully disagree with Mr Netanyahu. Australia remains a close friend of Israel, as we have been since the Labor Government recognised the State of Israel when it was created by the United Nations. Now that remains the position. The disappointment to me is that I had thought that there would be, at a time like this, unity in Australia. I had thought that everybody participating, everybody in Federal Parliament, everybody in political leadership in this country, would understand that this is a time to unite and set our faces against antisemitism, and to say we stand together against antisemitism. Instead, what we've seen, as you've mentioned, is criticism, is disunity, a call to divide from quite a number of senior Liberals, including Mr Dutton, and it's disappointing that that's the stance that they've taken. This is not a time for partisan bickering. This is not a time to seek party advantage, Michael. This is a time for all Australians to unite and to say we set our faces against antisemitism. We stand together with the Jewish community in Australia. We are going to make sure that antisemitism is ended. I've experienced levels of antisemitism, as has every Australian Jew, like we have never experienced it before in our lives. I've been in the Parliament for a long time Michael, and I've never experienced the kind of vile, antisemitic hate speech that's been directed at my colleagues, at me, simply because I am a Jew. Now that's got to stop. And it's not a time for finger pointing, it's not a time for cheap criticisms like we've seen from Mr Dutton, it's a time for unity, and I'm waiting for it.
ROWLAND: I'm sorry you're experiencing that as a member of the Jewish community. Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, thank you so much for joining us.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL: Thank you very much, Michael. And can I say I wish you well as you now leave after 15 years of long service on the Breakfast show, thank you very much.
ROWLAND: I'm looking forward to the sleep but I appreciate the kind words. Thanks very much.
ENDS
