Australia’s intelligence chief has warned that antisemitism in the country has reached a “disturbing level”, while acknowledging that authorities cannot rule out the possibility of Iran targeting prominent Australian Jewish figures, Jerusalem News Syndicate reports
His comments come as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited a Sydney Jewish school whose community suffered directly in the deadly Bondi Beach terrorist attack.
Mike Burgess, Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), discussed the threat during an appearance on broadcaster Neil Mitchell’s Mitchell Unlimited podcast on Thursday.
“We still have antisemitism as a problem, and that does concern me,” Burgess said.
He described a progression from intimidation following the Hamas-led 7 October 2023 attack on Israel to direct attacks against Jewish individuals, synagogues and businesses.
“It’s got to a pretty high, disturbing level,” Burgess said. “It started with threatening, intimidating behaviour and then, a year later, it transitioned to direct targeting of people, places of worship and businesses.”
Burgess linked this worsening environment to the December 2025 Bondi Beach terrorist attack, in which 15 people were killed by a father and son reportedly inspired by Islamic State.
“And then we saw the death of 15 people. I reckon that’s a bad place for us to be,” he said.
The intelligence chief also reflected on whether Australian authorities and political leaders should have responded more forcefully as antisemitism increased.
“Maybe I could have shouted more. Political leaders could have said ‘this is not right,’” he said.
Burgess stressed the importance of distinguishing criticism of Israel from hostility towards Australian Jews: “By all means be critical of the State of Israel but actually say, ‘But we’re not talking about Australians or people of Jewish faith.’”
He also said the possibility that Iran could target prominent Jewish figures in Australia could not be dismissed.
On Friday, Albanese visited Kesser Torah College in Sydney, accompanied by Federal Education Minister Jason Clare, to hear directly about the impact of antisemitism and terrorism on the Jewish community.
More than 90 Kesser Torah students were present when the Bondi attack occurred. Teachers and parents were among those killed, while students suffered injuries.
“Since then, the school has shown up for those carrying the ongoing trauma and grief,” Albanese wrote after the visit. “Hearing the stories from staff today was a reminder of both the depth of that loss and the extraordinary strength of this community.”
Kesser Torah said it had invited the prime minister to witness first-hand the needs of its community. The visit took place without media present, allowing Albanese and Clare to speak directly with school leaders while minimising disruption to pupils. The school said details of the visit had been announced beforehand because of strict security requirements.
Photo credit: David Gray/AFP via Getty Images
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