Iran threatens reciprocal action after Australia expels its ambassador over alleged antisemitic attacks. Image Credit: Depositphotos via The Diplomat
(The Post News) – Iran has threatened Australia with reciprocal action after Canberra expelled the country’s ambassador, accusing Tehran of orchestrating antisemitic arson attacks in Sydney and Melbourne. Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi, along with three other Iranian embassy officials, has been designated “persona non grata” and given a seven-day notice to depart the country.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced at a joint news conference that intelligence services had reached a “deeply disturbing conclusion” about Iran’s role in the attacks against the Jewish community. He said investigators had uncovered evidence that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) orchestrated a series of attacks using a “complex web of proxies” to disguise its involvement.
Albanese revealed that intelligence linked Tehran to the October 2024 torching of a kosher café in Sydney’s Bondi neighbourhood, as well as a bigger arson attack in December on Melbourne’s Adass Israel Synagogue. The synagogue was built in the 1960s by Holocaust survivors. While no one was injured in either attack, both incidents caused significant structural damage.
However, according to intelligence reports, officials suspect the orchestrated attacks by Iran “likely” date back as early as October 2023. During that month, a series of incidents targeting Jewish schools, homes, vehicles, and synagogues were initially believed to be isolated antisemitic hate crimes. Newly declassified intelligence now suggests these might have been the first in a string of coordinated operations directed by Tehran.
The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio) chief Mike Burgess described the months-long investigation as “painstaking,”. He alleged that Iran was able to maintain plausible deniability by using a hierarchy of operatives, including criminals and members of organised crime gangs, to carry out the attacks on its behalf. With a population of roughly 90,000 Iranian-born residents in Australia, he ensured to stress that this does not mean all antisemitic acts in Australia are due to the Iranian people or regime.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the expulsion marked the first time Australia had removed an ambassador since World War II. She confirmed that Canberra had withdrawn its own diplomats from Tehran to a third country and suspended operations at its embassy, due to concerns over staff safety. Wong also added that Australia would continue to maintain limited diplomatic channels while simultaneously encouraging its citizens to avoid travelling to Iran at the moment.
Prime Minister Albanese also announced that the government would legislate to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, justifying the move as a necessary step to curb social discord and protect national security.
Iran has since “absolutely rejected” the allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei condemned Australia’s actions as “unjustified,” asserting that the decision to expel Sadeghi was influenced by domestic political considerations in Canberra. Baghaei warned that Tehran would take “reciprocal reaction” in response, though he did not specify what this means.
World studies professor at the University of Tehran, Foad Izadi noted that Sadeghi’s outspoken support for the Palestinian cause likely played a role in his expulsion. Speaking to Al Jazeera, he suggested that the decision was influenced by recent large-scale pro-Palestinian demonstrations across Australia, reflecting domestic political pressures on the government.
Izad also argued that Canberra may also be responding to domestic public scrutiny that the Australian government is facing over their stance on Israel and Palestine. There has been mounting criticism of Israeli military operations in Gaza, along with calls for Australia to adopt a more proactive stance in advocating for Palestinian rights.
Meanwhile, Wong reiterated the importance of citizen safety, urging any Australians in Iran to depart immediately if it is safe to do so.
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