Anthony Albanese has attended a service at the Great Synagogue in Sydney “to honour the memory of those lost” in the Bondi terror attack.
After conceding that his government could have done more to curb the rise of antisemitism in Australia before the attack on a Hanukah celebration, the prime minister attended the service on Friday evening – the first Shabbat since the attack.
He posted a photograph of himself and his wife, Jodie Haydon, inside the synagogue on Instagram and wrote: “Tonight at the Great Synagogue in Sydney we honour the memory of those lost.
Rabbi Benjamin Elton greets Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese at The Great Synagogue in Sydney. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/EPA
“We stand with their families and the Jewish Australian community in this time of grief.
“All Australians stand together against antisemitism and hatred.”
The chief rabbi to the UK and to the Commonwealth, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, was also at the service having travelled from London to Sydney to offer his support to those affected by Sunday’s terror attack, where 15 people were killed.
Anthony Albanese at the Great Synagogue in Sydney. Photograph: Anthony Albanese Instagram
“I came to Sydney to offer some encouragement to a community in mourning,” he said before attending the Sabbath service.
“Instead, they have taught me what courage truly looks like.”
Sir Ephraim landed in Sydney on Thursday and will join leaders of Australia’s Jewish community in the first Shabbat or Jewish sabbath since the deadly terror attack.
UK and Commonwealth chief rabbi Ephraim Mirvis arrives at The Great Synagogue in Sydney. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
“Where there might have been despair, I’ve found resolve. Where there might have been hatred, I’ve found hope,” he said.
Sir Ephraim said despite the targeted attack at Bondi, the Jewish community had adopted a unique resolve.
“This is not a community asking, ‘why us?’ This is a community asking, ‘what now?’” he said.
“And their answer has been extraordinary: this Hanukah, they are turning the darkness of their grief into a light that illuminates the whole world.”
Chief of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, Michele Goldman, said Friday’s Shabbat – a traditional day of rest – “will be unlike any other”.
“We are entering the first shabbat since this unspeakable tragedy,” she said.
“Across our community, Jewish families will gather around tables with too many empty seats.
“We will feel the weight of loss deeply, and we will grieve together in quiet reflection.
“This shabbat is a time for mourning as well as for strength. We will honour those who have been taken from us and draw comfort from the solidarity of our community and the broader Australian public.”
Australia’s most famous beach was flooded with hundreds of surfers and beachgoers on Friday, all paying tribute to those killed.
A national day of mourning has also been declared for Sunday and a formal, public service for victims and survivors will follow suit in the new year.