Home – J-Wire

Teachers’ union moves to address holocaust denial and antisemitism in NZ classrooms

News Greg Bouwer - 26/06/2026

New Zealand's secondary teachers' union is developing new guidance for educators following reports of increasing Holocaust denial, antisemitism and other forms of extremist behaviour...

News

Man sentenced over antisemitic death threats to Albanese and Minns

A West Australian man who sent an antisemitic message threatening to assassinate Prime Minister...

News

Jewish life makes news every day

Jewish life makes news every day. Sometimes it is inspiring. Sometimes it is confronting. Sometimes...

News

Jewish woman alleges antisemitic abuse at Vodafone store

A disabled elderly Jewish woman has alleged she was subjected to antisemitic abuse and...

Israel

Israel opens new Eastern Rail Line to expand national transport network

Israel’s Eastern Railway will begin passenger service on Sunday, opening a new rail corridor...

News

EU antisemitism head warns against circumcision ban

At an emergency meeting on Wednesday about Belgium’s indictment of three Jewish circumcisers, the...

News

Netanyahu concludes testimony as corruption trial advances to next stage

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded his testimony on Wednesday, completing 98 hearings in his...

News

Greens councillors oppose local government motion against antisemitism and racism

A national local government motion urging a coordinated national framework to tackle antisemitism and...

News

Haredi block Israeli freeway

A convoy of Haredi (Ultra-Orthodox) anti-draft protestors on Highway 1 near Abu Ghosh on...

News

UIA Women’s Division helping rebuild the heartbeat of Jerusalem

For Israeli mothers raising babies through war, trauma and uncertainty, support can change everything. The...

News

Israeli investigator challenges UN over response to Hamas sexual violence

An Israeli human rights expert has accused the United Nations of failing victims of...

Community

Heritage College students stand with Jewish community

Students at a school in Melbourne’s south-east have held a Holocaust remembrance ceremony after...

News

Australian and former resident tied to Iran-directed Jewish attacks

Australians and former residents living overseas helped Iran orchestrate firebombings targeting Jewish sites in...

Shooting from the lip

Michael Kuttner -

Instead of the “sheriff” in the White House shooting from the hip and making the outlaw gangs surrender, he...

Nationalism and Liberalism

Jeremy Rosen -

I have always enjoyed reading Yuval Harari (Sapiens, Homo Deus and Nexus). He is creative and controversial. He covers such a wide range of anthropology,...

Bye-bye Bibi: May it happen speedily and in our times

Menachem Rosensaft -

In a profanity-filled telephone conversation last September, according to New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan in their new book, Regime Change: Inside the...

Alarm bells go off in New York

Melanie Phillips - JNS.org -

Extreme socialism is now on the march in America, with the demonisation of Israel as the principal weapon in its arsenal. Claire Valdez, Brad Lander...

Are Jewish Australians being given answers?

Michael Gencher -

There is a question hanging over the Australian Jewish community: when something happens that shocks us, frightens us or confirms what we have been...

The JD Vance foreign policy test ride is a disaster

Jonathan S. Tobin - JNS.org -

Whether he succeeds in getting a “peace” agreement with Iran or not, the vice president’s attempt at appeasement isn’t going to help him or...

Into the fray: Et tu, Donald?

Martin Sherman -

Iran: Has Trump lost the plot? The floated proposal makes no sense. Worse, it is dangerous. It would reward a maniacal regime not for reforming,...

Shabbat Chukat & Balak

Jeremy Rosen -

Alone There are two portions of the Torah that we, in the diaspora, will read this Shabbat. After the crisis initiated by the reports of the...

The search for Sydney’s missing Steinway

J-Wire News Service -

What happened to the Steinway concert grand that once stood on the stage of the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, carrying a plaque from...

Trump’s Iran deal leaves Israel out in the cold

Ron Weiser -

In assessing the situation, in light of the 14-point MOU between the US and Iran, everything revolves around how one views a single individual,...

Can memories pass from one generation to the next?

Rob Klein -

Can the experiences of parents affect their children and grandchildren, not simply through upbringing or family history, but through biological inheritance? It is a question...

Sydney Jewish Writers Festival takes stories from page to stage

J-Wire Newsdesk -

The Sydney Jewish Writers Festival will move beyond the printed page this August with the launch of Festival of the Spoken Word, a new...

On the other hand

Michael Kuttner -

What do you do with all the food which is left over from weddings, Bar and Bat Mitzvot, Britot and other such celebrations? One...

Feintooner

Feintooner -

This week's cartoon: AdVANCEing Antisemitism

Lecture: Is free will an illusion?

That question will sit at the heart of a major public lecture by internationally renowned Jewish philosopher Associate Professor Samuel Lebens when he visits...

Have You Heard?

The search for Sydney’s missing Steinway

Have You Heard? J-Wire News Service -

What happened to the Steinway concert grand that once stood on the stage of the Sydney Opera House Concert...

Can memories pass from one generation to the next?

Sydney Jewish Writers Festival takes stories from page to stage

Arts J-Wire Newsdesk -

The Sydney Jewish Writers Festival will move beyond the printed page this August with the launch of Festival of...

Lecture: Is free will an illusion?

Have You Heard? -

That question will sit at the heart of a major public lecture by internationally renowned Jewish philosopher Associate Professor...

Protecting critical infrastructure: Israeli expertise in focus at security forum

Have You Heard? J-Wire Newsdesk -

Australia’s power grids, transport networks, ports and data centres are now frontline targets in a new era of cyber...

CBDChabad expands Lunch & Learn program to Barangaroo

Have You Heard? J-Wire Newsdesk -

CBDChabad Sydney has expanded its weekly Lunch & Learn network across the Sydney CBD, following a successful trial session...

Opinion

Reader’s letter: “Six months after Bondi”

Your say – University antisemitism

A partially religious assessment of the Hamas-Israel conflict

Readers letters: Adelaide Writers Week

A response to Michael Kuttner’s Brick Wall

John Lyons’ criticism of “the Jewish lobby”: A reader proffers an explanation

The funeral of Rabbi Brian Fox: Where were the orthodox rabbis?

Readers Letters: Courage to Care shares its shock

A tragedy foretold – a reader’s letter

Advertising for a rabbi…a reader’s letter

Israel Football Association and FIFA

Photos

Schools around Australia celebrate Yom Haatzma’ut

Have You Heard? Rob Klein - 05/05/2026

Photo gallery Last week, schools across Australia came alive with colour, music and energy as students marked Yom Haatzmaut, celebrating...

Photo gallery: UIA Gala – Sydney

Featured Articles J-Wire photo story - 23/03/2026

Did you attend the UIA NSW Gala at Randwick Racecourse last month? The evening featured addresses from former Israeli minister...

Winner of the Arthur Rubinstein Musical Society visits Australia

Photo Galleries Features Desk - 30/11/2025

Australian Friends of the Arthur Rubinstein Musical Society, a prestigious Israeli piano competition, brought prize winner and Japanese piano...

Photo gallery: Pre-Chanukah celebration at NSW Parliament House

Photo Galleries J-Wire photo story - 28/11/2025

NSW Premier Chris Minns and newly elected Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane used this year’s pre-Chanukah celebration at Parliament House...

Stepping into the future of the Sydney Jewish Museum

Photo Galleries J-Wire - 24/10/2025

Visitors to the Sydney Jewish Museum were recently invited to step into the future. Over a series of preview events,...

Our Big Kitchen honours 9/11 with remembrance event

event Rob Klein - 18/09/2025

Our Big Kitchen (OBK) in Bondi marked the anniversary of the September 11 attacks with a community gathering of...

Were you at the Sydney Magen David Adom fundraiser?

Featured Articles J-Wire photo story - 19/06/2025

A J-Wire photo gallery.

A private viewing of the Archibalds – Photo gallery

Featured Articles J-Wire photo story - 11/06/2025

The Moriah Foundation was thrilled to host their annual private viewing of Australia’s most popular and eagerly awaited art...

Movies & TV

Jewish stories and talent showcased at South African Film Festival

17/06/2026

Three films with strong Jewish connections will feature in this year’s South African Film Festival, including the feature directorial debut of acclaimed actress Embeth Davidtz and a new short...

A Swedish saviour

Unknown to this Netflix subscriber, The Swedish Connection (Swedish: Den svenska länken) is the story of the heroic activities of a Swedish bureaucrat who is...

Golem horror film claims inaugural Jewish Australian Screen Fellowship

Queensland filmmaker Idan Kotzen has been named the first recipient of the Jewish Australian Screen Fellowship, a new $20,000 initiative designed to support Jewish...

Two AOs and another AM and OAM

The morning brought the news from readers that we had missed four Jewish recipients of the Australia Day Awards. They have been added to the...

2026 Australia Day Awards: The Jewish Recipients

JWire congratulates all Jewish recipients of this year’s Australia Day Awards. VIC ten awards - NSW three awards - WA three awards - SA one...

Don’t forget Iran!

The pace and range of U.S. President Donald Trump’s foreign-policy initiatives are simply dizzying. In keeping with Trump’s keen sense of drama, honed through his...

Theatre

Beau Jest

20/05/2026

A Melbourne theatre review by Alex First I can’t think of a Saltpillar Theatre endeavour that I have enjoyed more than this delightful production of Beau Jest. Premiering in Chicago in...

Cast announced for Australia’s Fiddler on the Roof

Troy Sussman began preparing for Tevye before he knew the role was his. As soon as he found out he was auditioning for “Fiddler on...

Eddie Jaku’s granddaughter reflects on “The Happiest Man on Earth”

By Danielle Jaku-Greenfield You wouldn’t believe how strange it is to see a man you don’t know perform as your grandfather on stage. That’s what I...

Tradition revisited: Fiddler on the Roof returns

Few musicals have endured like ‘Fiddler on the Roof’, but its staying power has never relied on nostalgia alone. Since opening on Broadway in 1964,...

Sydney Jewish comedy showcase returns with laughs, stories and a stacked line-up

Sydney’s Jewish comedy scene is gearing up for a lively night, with the Sydney Jewish Comedy Showcase returning next month as part of the...

West Gate

A Melbourne Theatre Company production reviewed by Alex First It happened more than 55 years ago – on 15th October, 1970 – and was Australia’s...

Music

Pianist knew he was “overstepping the mark” on Gaza

19/05/2026

Concert pianist Jayson Gillham has denied he deliberately misled the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra about performing a piece dedicated to journalists killed in Gaza. It has been almost two years since...

Pianist’s Gaza remarks spark Federal Court fight

A court has heard the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra was thrown into turmoil after pianist Jayson Gillham made comments about the war in Gaza during...

Israel defies Eurovision pressure to claim second place

Israel’s Noam Bettan has finished second at the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, after a campaign marked by boycott calls, protests and intense scrutiny...

A Jewish Australian story shines again at Eurovision

As Eurovision heads into its 2026 finals in Vienna, Danny Estrin is returning to the contest in a new role, bringing the same Jewish...

Organic Saint-Saens

Oh, boy – did the Concert Hall of Sydney’s iconic Opera House get an acoustic workout in Saturday afternoon’s Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s Saint-Saens Organ...

Eugene Onegin

An opera review by Victor Grynberg Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) is widely acknowledged as the finest Russian composer of all time. In fact, most critics will...

Books

Sydney Jewish Writers Festival takes stories from page to stage

24/06/2026

The Sydney Jewish Writers Festival will move beyond the printed page this August with the launch of Festival of the Spoken Word, a new month-long program of live Jewish...

Conversations with my Rabbi

Nikki’s Conversations with her Rabbi Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin Writing the book Conversations with my Rabbi clearly proved both cathartic and transformative for author...

From Music to Mayhem

Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin From 1924 to 1933, a jazz band comprising seven young, creative and brilliant musicians—six of whom were Jewish—reached the...

Who will rescue us?

The story of the Jewish children who fled to France and America during the Holocaust Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin When Jewish boys and girls...

Heart of a Stranger

Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin Everything about Rabbi Angela Buchdahl’s compelling memoir is unusual. This is the only autobiography I’ve ever read that includes...

Chaim Grade’s “Sons and Daughters”

Book review by Dr Anne Sarzin Chaim Grade’s Sons and Daughters transports one brilliantly and completely into the bygone world of the Jewish shtetl, which...

Opera

The Phantom of the Opera

06/04/2026

An opera review by Alex First Superlatives can’t do justice to a magnificent Handa Opera production of The Phantom of the Opera on its 40th anniversary. With the Sydney Opera House...

Hansel & Gretel- now a spectacular opera

An Opera Review by Victor Grynberg There would be few people unaware of the famous fairy tale Hansel & Gretel, written by the German brothers...

Sydney Opera House memorial reclaims a national symbol after Bondi attack

Flags above the Sydney Harbour Bridge flew at half-mast last night as families of the victims, Jewish leaders and political figures gathered at the...

Carmen – an opera review by Alex First

Passion, obsession, desperation, jealousy and rage make for a fiery combination in composer Georges Bizet’s Carmen, newly interpreted by director Anne-Louise Sarks for Opera...

Performer displays PLO flag at London’s Royal Opera House

A cast member at London’s Royal Opera House unfurled a PLO flag during the final curtain call of Giuseppe Verdi’s Il trovatore on Saturday night, prompting...

Lang Lang at the Opera House

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) hosted a beautiful evening of French music of the Romantic era featuring the dazzling pianist Lang Lang. Opening the program...

Sport

Ireland-Israel Nations League game moved to neutral site

14/06/2026

Ireland’s UEFA Nations League home match against Israel on Oct. 4 will be played at a neutral venue and behind closed doors due to “operational challenges", the Football Association...

Maccabi Bridge bridges generations

Last weekend, Maccabi Bridge held its inaugural 2026 National Championships in Sydney, bringing together more than 50 bridge players from across the community for...

Albanese says alleged antisemitic abuse at netball match is “beyond belief”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has condemned the alleged antisemitic abuse directed at Jewish children during a Sydney netball match, describing the incident as “beyond...

Police charge woman over alleged antisemitic abuse at children’s netball match

A 42-year-old woman has been charged and provisionally suspended from all netball activities after allegedly directing antisemitic abuse at Jewish children during an under-12s...