Sharing our pain, experiences and togetherness Sharni Briner, 12 July 2024, Australian Jewish News https://www.australianjewishnews.com/sharing-our-pain-experiences-and-togetherness/ The Diaspora and Israel are still co-dependent on the other’s survival and flourishing. What is Jewish solidarity in 2024? This question cannot be considered without acknowledging two sides of the coin that make up the modern Jewish identity – Israel […]

Australia must apply real pressure on Hezbollah and Iran over Israel Bren Carlill, Canberra Times, 9 July 2024 https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/8686439/australia-must-apply-real-pressure-on-hezbollah-iran-over-israel/?cs=14246 The October 7 Hamas invasion of southern Israel, and the war it launched, came out of the blue. But for the last nine months, in northern Israel, Hezbollah and Israel have been drifting towards war. The […]

Australia should be concerned by a court that breaks its own rules Bren Carlill, Canberra Times, 27 May 2024 The International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor Karim Khan has announced that he is applying to the Court to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and defence minister, as well as three Hamas leaders. The move is […]

By Alon Cassuto This oped originally appeared in the Australian Jewish News on 12 April 2024 Zionism is not just a political movement; it is a symbol of pride, a beacon of hope, and a source of inspiration. It stands as testament to the power of self-determination, the miraculous journey of an ancient people who, […]

Canberra Times opinion piece (original article here), by Bren Carlill Last weekend, the Victorian state Labor conference passed a resolution calling on the Albanese government to recognise Palestinian statehood. This came a couple of days after former Labor foreign minister Gareth Evans published his case for doing the same. The last few Labor national conferences have passed resolutions […]

Jeremy Leibler, The Australian, 20 February 2023 It’s telling to compare the fracas generated last year by Sydney Festival’s inclusion of a dance performance created by an Israeli and sponsored by the embassy of Israel with the scenario playing out at this year’s Adelaide Writers’ Week. The catalyst for confected outrage and intimidation of artists […]

By Jeremy Leibler This article originally appeared in the Australian Jewish News 26 November 2021 So much of what I’ve been reading of late bemoans the increasingly problematic relationship between American Jewry and Israel – a situation Daniel Gordis described in The New York Times as “the unravelling of American Zionism”. The article had me reflecting on […]

By Dr. Bren Carlill This article first appeared in the Canberra Times on 22 September 2021 Israel has had a lonely time of it in the Middle East. After seven decades of existence, it only had full diplomatic relations with two Arab countries. The rest, in solidarity with the Palestinians, boycotted the Jewish state. But […]

Much of the outrage sparked by barrister Julian Burnside’s recent tweet (since withdrawn) likening the treatment of Palestinians to that of Jews during the Holocaust hinged on the assessment that someone with his level of education should know better.