Backlash grows over Sydney event defending ‘globalise the intifada’
April 9, 2026 by Rob Klein
A City of Sydney council venue will host a public forum next month defending the phrase “globalise the intifada”, prompting strong criticism from Jewish leaders and renewed scrutiny of Cumberland councillor Ahmed Ouf.
IDF soldier KIA in Southern Lebanon, bringing total war toll to 937
Slain Israel Defence Forces Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, 20, from the northern city of Beit She’an. Credit: IDF.
Israel Defense Forces Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, 20, from the northern city of Beit She’an, was killed fighting Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists in Southern Lebanon, the military announced on Wednesday night.
Lifshiz served in the 13th Battalion of the IDF’s Golani Brigade, the statement said. Five other soldiers sustained injuries of varying degrees and were evacuated to a hospital in Israel, it added.
The total death toll among Israeli troops since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border massacre now stands at 937. Twelve IDF soldiers have been killed since the expansion of ground operations in Southern Lebanon in early March.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in response to the announcement that “our hearts are with the family of the heroic Golani soldier, Staff-Sgt. Touvel Yosef Lifshiz, of blessed memory, who fell in battle in Southern Lebanon.”
“We pray for the swift and full recovery of our soldiers who were wounded in the same incident, after fighting bravely against Hezbollah terrorists,” he stated. “We will continue to act with full force to remove the threat to the residents of the north. May the memory of Touvel, of blessed memory, be a blessing and be preserved forever.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz in an X post extended his “heartfelt condolences” on behalf of the Jewish state’s defense establishment.
“I wish to send a speedy recovery to all the wounded heroes and to strengthen the commanders and soldiers of the IDF who are currently fighting bravely in Southern Lebanon and across the other fronts,” he tweeted. “May his memory be blessed.”
Hezbollah began firing rockets and suicide drones at Israel on March 2, in retaliation for the Jewish state’s targeted killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Khamenei was killed in the opening strikes of “Operation Roaring Lion/Epic Fury” against the regime on Feb. 28.
In response to the terrorist organization’s violation of the U.S.-brokered Nov. 27, 2024, truce agreement, Jerusalem launched an aerial campaign against Hezbollah and ordered IDF troops to advance and take control of additional areas in Southern Lebanon to halt cross-border attacks.
Netanyahu stressed in an address on Wednesday night that Lebanon is not part of the truce with Iran that the United States and Tehran agreed to on Tuesday.
“I insisted that the temporary ceasefire with Iran not include Hezbollah. And we continue to strike them forcefully,” the premier said in a prime time address following the conclusion of the Passover holiday in Israel.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Israeli Air Force launched its largest coordinated strikes against Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanon since the start of “Operation Roaring Lion” on Feb. 28.
The large-scale wave of attacks targeted Hezbollah headquarters, military infrastructure and command-and-control centers in Beirut, the Beqaa Valley and Southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli army.
Netanyahu said Hezbollah on Wednesday suffered “the greatest blow since the pagers,” in reference to the Sept. 17-18, 2024, attacks in Lebanon, which wounded thousands of terrorist operatives. “We attacked 100 targets in 10 minutes, in places Hezbollah was certain were immune,” he said.
All holy sites in Israel including the Western Wall reopen to public
April 9, 2026 by J-Wire
The Israel Police said that, in light of the change in defence policy and the update of the IDF Home Front Command guidelines after the ceasefire with Iran went into effect, the holy places in the city of Jerusalem will now be open for public visits and prayers. Read more
L’Chaim – to Life
April 9, 2026 by J-Wire
Professor Henry Brodaty – There is a lot we can do to improve people’s quality of life for many years with dementia Read more
Australia and Israel at odds over Lebanon ceasefire
April 9, 2026 by AAP
Lebanon must be included in a temporary truce in the Middle East, Australia says, warning motorists will pay the price at the bowser if the conflict drags on. Read more
Gunmen attack Israeli consulate building in Istanbul
April 7, 2026 by Associated Press
One attacker is dead, and two others are wounded after a gun battle with Turkish police outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul. Read more
War updates
April 7, 2026 by J-Wire
7,183 people wounded in missile/rocket attacks since the start of the Iran War. Read more
Australia, UNESCO open pilot program to train educators on combating Jew-hatred in schools
April 7, 2026 by Mike Wagenheim - JNS
Australia has launched a pilot program in the country’s schools to help educators identify and address antisemitism in the classroom. Read more
Victorian Multicultural Commission forced to change charter after antisemitic statements
April 7, 2026 by J-Wire News Service
A Melbourne Jewish community advocate has secured changes to the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC)’s charter. The changes follow a legal complaint over antisemitic social media posts by a former commissioner.
Trump: Iran must surrender or go back to the Stone Age
April 7, 2026 by David Singer
President Trump has left Iran with no option but to end Operation Epic Fury by surrendering its armed forces and handing over its remaining weapons of mass destruction. Read more
After everything, Macquarie is still teaching the same poison
April 7, 2026 by Michael Gencher
After everything Australia has been through in recent years, after the hatred, intimidation, and cowardice, after the December 14 massacre and all the speeches that followed, after yet more promises of action and resolve, we are still here. Read more
From Australia’s Jewish past
April 7, 2026 by Features Desk
Henryk Ryszard (Richard) Krygier – publisher, journalist, and businessman Read more
Elderly couple, son and partner killed in Haifa strike
April 7, 2026 by Kostis Konstantinou
Israeli rescue teams recovered the bodies of four people from the rubble of a residential building in Haifa on Monday, ending an 18-hour search after an Iranian ballistic missile struck the structure and triggered a partial collapse. Read more
Jewish and war memorials damaged in Caulfield Park
April 7, 2026 by J-Wire Newsdesk
Several significant memorials in Caulfield Park, Melbourne, including those connected to Jewish history, have been damaged or destroyed, prompting concern from the local community and calls for a thorough investigation by Glen Eira City Council and police.
The Phantom of the Opera
April 6, 2026 by Alex First
An opera review by Alex First Read more
The High Road: Confessions of a homicide cop
April 6, 2026 by Anne Sarzin
Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin Read more
Menachem Begin would be horrified by Israel’s death penalty law
April 6, 2026 by Menachem Rosensaft
The death penalty law adopted last week by a bare majority of 62 Knesset members is a discriminatory abomination that would subject West Bank Palestinians to capital punishment. Read more
Stonnington Council faces antisemitism royal commission investigation
April 6, 2026 by Rob Klein
Stonnington Council has been referred to the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohestion after it deferred a decision last December to install a menorah at Malvern Town Hall.
Zionism Today
April 6, 2026 by Jeremy Rosen
Every year, there is an overload of Pesach newsletters and blogs, usually regurgitating everything we have heard before, rationally and mystically, about slavery, freedom and survival. Read more
Baby delivered by United Hatzalah Medics amid missile sirens on Erev Pesach
April 6, 2026 by Simmy Allen
During missile alerts on the eve of Passover, two volunteer medics from United Hatzalah safely delivered a baby girl under extraordinary circumstances. Read more
Australia’s Prime Minister
April 6, 2026 by J-Wire News Service
A message for Pesach from Anthony Albanese Read more
Three charged over arson attack on Jewish community ambulances in London
April 5, 2026 by Rob Klein
British police have charged three men in connection with the arson attack on four ambulances belonging to the Jewish volunteer service Hatzola (known as Hatzolah in Australia) in north London.
Two more teens in Moree charged over extremist material
April 4, 2026 by J-Wire News Service
A counter-terrorism investigation in northern New South Wales has widened following the arrest of two more teenagers over alleged extremist material.
Accused Bondi shooter’s fearful family lose court gag order bid
April 4, 2026 by AAP
Death threats against family members of the surviving alleged Bondi massacre gunman have failed to persuade a judge to bar the publication of their names.
Four Israeli soldiers killed in Southern Lebanon
April 1, 2026 by JNS
Four Israel Defence Forces soldiers have been killed battling Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists in Southern Lebanon, the military said on Tuesday morning. Read more
Police find no offence at neo-Nazi rally as government keeps hate speech review secret
April 1, 2026 by J-Wire News Service
A neo-Nazi leader who promoted a conspiracy theory about the Jewish community during a protest outside NSW Parliament did not breach racial vilification laws, according to a NSW Police review, as debate intensifies over the strength and clarity of the state’s hate speech regime.
Between sirens and coffee cups, Jerusalem refuses to stop
April 1, 2026 by Kostis Konstantinou
“Jerusalemites in heart and soul.” That is how they describe themselves, sipping their coffee as though it were any other day, holding fast to a routine from better times they still hope will return. Read more
War updates
April 1, 2026 by TPS-IL
Latest reports Read more
Ben-Gvir’s death penalty law is an abomination
April 1, 2026 by Menachem Rosensaft
Just days before Pesach – Passover – when Jews around the world recite avadim hayinu, that we were once slaves in Egypt, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and 60 other Israeli parliamentarians saw fit to enact a morally repugnant death penalty law that effectively only applies to West Bank Palestinians convicted of lethal terrorist attacks. Read more
13-year-old girl charged with antisemitic attacks in stolen cars
April 1, 2026 by J-Wire News Service
A 13-year-old girl from Melbourne’s Bayside area faces 52 charges, including antisemitic offences.
