![\"Caitlin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1783907470_183_Caitlin_Cassidy.png\")
Caitlin Cassidy<\/p>\nWitnesses at royal commission subjected to \u2018ugly antisemitic attacks\u2019 after appearing, commissioner saysCaitlin Cassidy<\/p>\n
The royal commissioner, Virginia Bell AC SC, says Jewish witnesses have been subject to \u201cugly antisemitic attacks\u201d after giving evidence of their own experiences of antisemitism.<\/p>\n
The fourth block of hearings in Melbourne this week is examining the lived experiences of antisemitism on Jewish students and academics, including the response of universities to combat it.<\/p>\n
Opening the hearing on Monday, Bell drew attention to the provisions of the Royal Commissions Act, which makes it an indictable offence to inflict any damage or disadvantage on a person on account of their evidence.<\/p>\n
Four academics and students are giving evidence under a pseudonym on Monday. Also appearing is a co-convener of Students for Palestine and education officer at the National Union of Students, Yasmine Johnson, the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Hugh de Krester, and Josh Keller of the Australian Academic Alliance Against Antisemitism.<\/p>\n
Updated at\u00a020.39 EDT<\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Kat Wong<\/p>\n Richard Scolyer \u2018opened his big heart to us all\u2019, Albanese says<\/p>\n The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has honoured the legacy of the pioneering cancer researcher Richard Scolyer, who continued his work even as he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer that Scolyer described as a \u201cstraight path to death\u201d.<\/p>\n double quotation markRichard was without question one of our brightest stars.<\/p>\n As he faced up to his new reality, no one would have begrudged him retreating into the shelter of his family and friends.<\/p>\n Yet that is not what he chose. Instead, he opened his big heart to us all, and what Australia got to see was a man absolutely determined to change that straight path.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.50 EDT<\/p>\n Richard Scolyer remembered as a \u2018true communitarian\u2019 at state memorial<\/p>\n Kat Wong<\/p>\n The governor general, Sam Mostyn, has laid out the ways the pioneering cancer researcher touched the lives of those around him.<\/p>\n double quotation markThis was a true communitarian. His radical, inspiring honesty and openness as he and his family and close friends faced his biggest battle, is a lasting and generous gift to us all.<\/p>\n Lycra-clad cyclists from cancer charity Tour de Cure, Scolyer\u2019s carers, his colleagues, fellow 2024 Australian of the year recipient, Georgina Long, and his family were among those gathered at the Sydney Opera House for his state memorial on Monday.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.42 EDT<\/p>\n Jewish student says friends \u2018stopped talking to me entirely\u2019 due to her Zionism after 7 October terror attack<\/p>\n A Jewish student who is appearing under the pseudonym Liat has told the royal commission she lost her friends after the 7 October Hamas terror attack because of her Zionism.<\/p>\n Liat moved to Canberra in 2022 to study at the Australian National University and describes herself as proudly Zionist, with both her parents born in Israel.<\/p>\n After the 2023 terrorist attack and subsequent Gaza conflict, she said she lost the vast majority of her non-Jewish friends. In one instance, she said, someone at a theatre afterparty told her \u201cwe\u2019re not friends any more, you\u2019re a Zionist\u201d.<\/p>\n double quotation markI was very taken aback and deeply hurt that someone so flippantly could just go, \u2018well, you\u2019re of Israeli heritage, you can\u2019t possibly be my friend\u2019 \u2026 The majority of the people who were my friends at the time just stopped talking to me entirely.<\/p>\n Liat said you could critique Israel without being antisemitic but she hadn\u2019t seen \u201cexamples that accuse Israel of doing things without playing on those [antisemitic] tropes\u201d.<\/p>\n She pointed to an article in a magazine distributed by ANU\u2019s student association which described Zionism as a far-right political project and the state of Israel as run by proponents of genocide, which she said \u201cplays on the very classical antisemitic trope that Jews are particularly murderous\u201d.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.39 EDT<\/p>\n ASX slips as Iran claims strait of Hormuz closed again<\/p>\n The Australian share market has dipped as the US war on Iran heats back up.<\/p>\n Iran has claimed it has closed the strait of Hormuz after trading strikes with the US but Donald Trump has said the waterway is still open.<\/p>\n The news has lifted world oil prices, with Brent crude up from US$76 a barrel on Saturday morning to US$79 this morning. Markets\u2019 reactions have been more muted than they were on Thursday, when strikes resumed in the first place and Brent rose to US$80 \u2013 still well below the US$115 a barrel it reached in May.<\/p>\n Australian shares have taken a small hit. The benchmark S&P\/ASX200 index is down 0.14%, falling back below 8,800 points to 8,794 this morning.<\/p>\n Resmed, AGL Energy and Virgin Airlines have seen some of the biggest share price falls, respectively down about 4.4%, 3.7% and 2.8%.<\/p>\n Miner BHP and ANZ bank shares are each up almost 0.5%, CBA is up about 0.2%, Westpac and NAB are flat and Macquarie is down 0.45%. Ampol and Viva, the petrol retailers, are up at least 1.3%, enjoying a steady rise over the last fortnight with fuel prices set to rise once more.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.23 EDT<\/p>\n Kat Wong<\/p>\n State memorial for Richard Scolyer to begin<\/p>\n A state memorial for Prof Richard Scolyer, 2024 Australian of the year and pioneering melanoma researcher, is about to get under way.<\/p>\n Hundreds of people \u2013 including the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the governor general, Sam Mostyn \u2013 are expected to attend the Sydney Opera House on Monday morning as Scolyer\u2019s family and loved ones celebrate his life.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll be bringing you updates throughout the service.<\/p>\n Members of the Tour de Cure peloton ride past the Sydney Opera House ahead of the service. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi\/AAPProf Richard Scolyer\u2019s bicycle is escorted to the memorial. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.13 EDT<\/p>\n Royal commission to hear from Jewish staff and students \u2018verbally abused\u2019 and \u2018physically assaulted\u2019 on university campuses<\/p>\n Counsel assisting at the royal commission, Zelie Heger SC, says there have been \u201csignificant concerns\u201d raised in submissions to the commission about antisemitism at universities, which also have to balance \u201cdifferent rights and freedoms\u201d.<\/p>\n She says this block of hearings will hear evidence of Jewish staff and students being \u201cverbally abused, intimidated and even physically assaulted on campus\u201d, including a Nazi salute being given to a Jewish teacher in the classroom and Jews being called \u201cbaby killers or genocide supporters\u201d.<\/p>\n double quotation markA recurring theme is Jewish staff and students being assumed to take a particular position on the conflict in the Middle East simply by virtue of being Jewish or being Israeli \u2026 There are diverse views amongst the Jewish community as to that conflict.<\/p>\n Many Jews are opposed to the actions of the government of Israel. Indeed, there are Jews who do not identify as Zionist or do not identify with the state of Israel at all \u2026 No one doubts the importance of being able to debate the conflict in the Middle East \u2026 But I anticipate the evidence will show that there have been instances where protest on these issues has crossed the line.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.04 EDT<\/p>\n Burke says IS-linked Australian woman Hodan Abby likely considering if she would ever return to Australia<\/p>\n Government officials are monitoring the location of the final woman with links to Islamic State who has not returned to Australia, but the prospect of arrest on arrival might deter her from ever boarding a flight back, AAP reports.<\/p>\n The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, revealed the government was keeping track of Hodan Abby\u2019s location after an order stopping her return to Australia on national security grounds was lifted.<\/p>\n Burke said Abby would probably be weighing up whether or not to return to Australia, given she may face arrest on her arrival. He told ABC News this morning:<\/p>\n double quotation markAnybody who made a decision to go and join Isis made an absolutely horrific decision, and we\u2019ve got no interest in doing anything to help any of them back.<\/p>\n Our agencies are aware of her location \u2026 she\u2019d be weighing up the different things she\u2019s done and would be making a decision as to whether or not she in fact ever returns.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.52 EDT<\/p>\n Witnesses at royal commission subjected to \u2018ugly antisemitic attacks\u2019 after appearing, commissioner says The royal commissioner, Virginia Bell AC SC, says Jewish witnesses have been subject to \u201cugly antisemitic attacks\u201d after giving evidence of their own experiences of antisemitism.<\/p>\n The fourth block of hearings in Melbourne this week is examining the lived experiences of antisemitism on Jewish students and academics, including the response of universities to combat it.<\/p>\n Opening the hearing on Monday, Bell drew attention to the provisions of the Royal Commissions Act, which makes it an indictable offence to inflict any damage or disadvantage on a person on account of their evidence.<\/p>\n Four academics and students are giving evidence under a pseudonym on Monday. Also appearing is a co-convener of Students for Palestine and education officer at the National Union of Students, Yasmine Johnson, the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Hugh de Krester, and Josh Keller of the Australian Academic Alliance Against Antisemitism.<\/p>\n Commissioner for the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion, Virginia Bell. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.39 EDT<\/p>\n Does Pauline Hanson really have a path to government?<\/p>\n One Nation\u2019s spectacular rise from a distant 6% of the vote in the last election to first or second in some recent polls has upended Australian politics<\/a>. It has also made it a lot harder to predict what exactly will happen at the next election.<\/p>\n Traditionally, pollsters and election experts would look at how preferences flowed in previous elections when estimating two-party preferred numbers, or translating polling into seat projections. This was fairly predictable when almost every seat would come down to a contest between Labor and the Coalition<\/a>.<\/p>\n But, given the rise of One Nation, we are now in \u201cunknown territory\u201d, says George Hasanakos, head of research at DemosAu.<\/p>\n Read more:<\/p>\n One Nation leader Senator Pauline Hanson. Photograph: Mick Tsikas\/AAPShare<\/a>More than 600 trombonists gather in Queensland for world record attempt<\/p>\n A fun story from the weekend: More than 600 trombonists gathered in Ipswich, Queensland, on Sunday to secure a new world record for the world\u2019s largest trombone ensemble.<\/p>\n The group performed the piece 76 Trombones with, well, many more than that. Seizing an opportunity to toot their own horn, Ipswich\u2019s mayor, Teresa Harding, said in a statement:<\/p>\n double quotation markIpswich has once again shown the world what can happen when a community comes together with passion, creativity and a willingness to dream big.<\/p>\n To see hundreds of musicians of all skill levels in Tulmur Place ready to try and set a new world record is an extraordinary achievement and one that every participant, volunteer and supporter can be incredibly proud of.<\/p>\n Participants travelled from across south-east Queensland and beyond to take part.<\/p>\n The previous world record of 368 musicians was set in Washington DC in 2012. A submission has been made to Guinness World Records for official verification.<\/p>\n Ipswich City Big Band Music Director Matt Chambers and Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding at the world record attempt for most trombones playing a song at one time in Tulmur Place for Spark Ipswich arts festival. Photograph: ICC MediaThat\u2019s a lot of trombones. Photograph: ICC MediaShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.59 EDT<\/p>\n Australia\u2019s \u2018unfair\u2019 visa price hikes: what\u2019s changed and why it matters<\/p>\n The federal government has been accused of exploiting international students and permanent residents after non-refundable visa fees were quietly hiked by up to 200%, placing Australia well in excess of other western countries.<\/p>\n The peak body representing international students has warned prospective students to consider studying elsewhere, while critics affected by the scheme have accused Labor of trying to \u201cout-One Nation One Nation\u201d.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what you need to know.<\/p>\n![\"Virginia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2627.jpg\")
Commissioner for the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion, Virginia Bell. Photograph: Lukas Coch\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\nCaitlin Cassidy<\/p>\n![\"Luca](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Luca_Ittimani.png\")
Luca Ittimani<\/p>\nCaitlin Cassidy<\/p>\nCaitlin Cassidy<\/p>\n![\"Josh](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Josh_Nicholas_v2.png\")
Josh Nicholas<\/p>\nCaitlin Cassidy<\/p>\n