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Australian political leaders delivered solemn commemorations in Parliament on Tuesday marking two years since Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in Israel on October 7, 2023, including Australian grandmother Galit Karban, as both major parties pledged renewed efforts to combat rising antisemitism in Australia while expressing hope for Middle East peace under new American diplomatic initiatives.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley addressed Parliament on October 7, 2025, remembering what Albanese called “the largest loss of Jewish life on a single day since the Holocaust.”
“The 7th of October 2023 was a day of pain and terror for Jewish people around the world,” Albanese told the House of Representatives. “Hamas stands in opposition to all humanity and all that we value as human beings.”
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The attacks on the Nova Music Festival and Israeli communities near Gaza resulted in over 1,200 deaths and the kidnapping of more than 250 people. Australian-born grandmother and librarian Galit Karban was among those killed. Her brother, Danny Meishner, who survived the Kibbutz Be’eri attack, attended the parliamentary session.
“Galit’s brother, Danny Meishner, joins us in the gallery today and I’ll meet with him tomorrow,” Albanese said. “I say to him, we hold you in our hearts.”
Forty-eight hostages remain in captivity in Gaza two years after the attacks, ranging in age from 19 to 85. The Prime Minister acknowledged those “who not only had their freedom stolen from them, but their lives as well.”
Opposition Leader Ley delivered pointed criticism of the government’s response to the crisis, arguing Australia has failed to adequately support Israel and combat domestic antisemitism.
“I wish that today, as we mark this dark milestone, I could reflect on the strength of Australia’s response,” Ley said. “Yet to do so would be a lie. To our great shame, under the leadership of the Albanese Labor Government, Australia has not stood with the people of Israel nor with the United States as they have sought to dismantle Hamas and establish the conditions for peace.”
Ley noted the government “dragged its feet listing Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation” and said “Australia has been lauded by Hamas and condemned by Israel and by the United States.”
The Opposition Leader catalogued rising antisemitic incidents in Australia since October 7, 2023, including armed guards at Jewish childcare centers, boycotts of Jewish businesses, firebombed synagogues, and hateful graffiti sprayed in Fitzroy on the morning of the anniversary.
“As homes still smoldered in Israel, here in Australia, protesters hijacked a vigil at the Sydney Opera House with cries of, where’s the Jews?” Ley recounted. “In the years since, the tide of anti-Semitism has risen across Australia.”
Prime Minister Albanese affirmed the government’s stance against antisemitism: “The Australian government stands with Jewish people around the world who feel the cold shadow of history’s darkest chapter in any act of anti-Semitism. We will always stand against anti-Semitism, as should everyone.”
Both leaders expressed support for ongoing peace efforts. Albanese welcomed what he termed “President Trump’s plan to bring peace to Gaza after almost two years of conflict and a devastating loss of civilian life.”
The plan calls on Hamas to lay down its arms and immediately release all remaining hostages. Albanese reiterated the government’s consistent position calling for “a ceasefire in Gaza, the return of the hostages for aid to flow and a two-state solution.”
“That is the only path to enduring peace and security in the Middle East,” Albanese stated, “a future without Hamas and a future that encompasses two states, the State of Israel and the State of Palestine, living side by side within internationally recognised borders.”
Ley emphasized hope emerging from American diplomatic efforts: “Today, as we mark this moment and reflect on the horror of October 7, there is hope too. There is hope for a path to peace. Thanks to the efforts of the US administration, we must stand with the US and with Israel and give our support to this process.”
The Opposition Leader reminded Parliament that Hamas is a listed terrorist organization in Australia and that supporting Hamas constitutes a crime, not free speech. She called on the Australian Federal Police and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation to support Victoria Police in investigating the Fitzroy graffiti incident.
Ley also called on the government to implement recommendations from its own antisemitism envoy to combat rising hate crimes. She warned against protests planned for the week: “To those seeking to protest, heed this simple message, stop. Seeking to use October 7 to advance your political agenda is abhorrent and un-Australian.”
In his original motion following the 2023 attacks, Albanese noted that Parliament had explicitly recognized “that Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people nor their legitimate needs and aspirations.”
“We have never wavered from that stance,” the Prime Minister said Tuesday.
The commemoration highlighted ongoing tensions between the government and opposition over Australia’s Middle East policy. Foreign Minister Penny Wong has faced criticism for not meeting with Galit Karban’s family during a visit to Israel and for not visiting southern Israel where the attacks occurred.
Member for Barara delivered an extended address on antisemitism as part of a matter of definite public importance, recounting personal visits to the region before the attacks and describing the horror of October 7 in detail.
The member highlighted specific hostages still held, including 37-year-old Maxim Herkin from Ukraine, who was abducted from the Nova Music Festival after texting his mother “I love you” as the attack unfolded; 28-year-old twins Ziv and Gali Berman from Khawar Azhar; and 24-year-old Eviat David, a guitar player taken hostage while trying to escape the festival.
Both major parties emphasized Australia’s historical support for Israel as a Western liberal democracy sharing values of rule of law, religious freedom, and protection of minorities. Leaders noted Israel’s intelligence cooperation has helped prevent terrorist attacks in Australia.
The parliamentary session underscored bipartisan grief over the October 7 attacks while revealing sharp disagreement over policy responses and the government’s record on combating antisemitism in Australia.
Speaker of the House called for a moment of silence in memory of former Member for Eden Monaro James Henry Snow, who died September 18, 2025, and served in Parliament from 1983 to 1996.
The anniversary commemoration concluded with opposition calls for stronger action against hate crimes and government pledges to continue pursuing Middle East peace while protecting Jewish Australians from rising antisemitism.
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