Bondi Victim's Daughter Sheina Gutnick Details Antisemitic Threats at Royal Commission
Sheina Gutnick, whose father Reuven Morrison was killed in the December Bondi Beach shooting, has told Australia's royal commission into antisemitism that she has received messages stating she too should have been killed. Morrison died while attempting to deter the gunmen at a Hanukkah event where 15 people lost their lives. Gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was killed by police, and his son, Naveed Akram, faces 59 charges, including 15 counts of murder and one count of committing a terrorist attack.
Antisemitism 'Allowed into the Open'
Appearing as the first witness in Sydney, Gutnick recounted feeling unsafe in Australia, noting that people attempted to 'excuse and justify the events as only anti-Zionist'. She described a 'huge shift' in antisemitism since October 2023, feeling that it was 'allowed to come into the open' and that 'it was socially, morally acceptable for antisemitic comments to be made in public discourse'. Gutnick's father, who fled the USSR at 14, was 'deeply proud' of being Australian, though Bondi Beach now evokes 'complicated' feelings for her.
Another witness, identified as AAL, who emigrated from South Africa in the 1980s, expressed profound disillusionment. He stated, 'I have to think very seriously whether this is the country for my grandchildren'.
The royal commission has received nearly 7,500 submissions. The initial block of public hearings, concluding on 15 May, is concentrating on personal experiences of antisemitism. Last week, former High Court judge Virginia Bell, overseeing the commission, issued an interim report with 14 recommendations. These included prioritising gun reforms and extending policing arrangements for Jewish high holy days to other Jewish events. Bell acknowledged a 'sharp spike' in antisemitism, 'mirrored in other western countries,' directly linking it to 'events in the Middle East.' The commission is scheduled to deliver its final report on the anniversary of the shooting.
