Antisemitism in Australia: Mainstream Muslim organizations say fired nurses victims of selective outrage

More than 50 Australian Muslim bodies or nationwide groups have come out in support of two Muslim nurses who admitted on social media that they have killed Israeli patients and intend to kill more, according to The Australian.

The organizations, which range from the Muslim vote political campaign, its endorsed independent candidates, and radical preachers and Islamic leaders said that the nurses were victims of "weaponized anti-semitism" and "manufactured political outrage."

The statement conceded that the nurses' video was "inappropriate" and that they should be treated in accordance with appropriate ethical standards, but insisted that the anger and outrage over their statement was a sign of hypocrisy.

Their statement said that "the most revealing aspect of the reaction to the nurses' video is not the (footage) itself - but the speed, intensity, and uniformity of response from certain political leaders and media outlets."

It further stated that "outrage is manufactured when it serves a political narrative, with silence deployed when the truth might expose the complicity of those in power."

The nurses, Ahmad "Rashad" Nadir and Sarah Abu Ledeh, who worked at Bankstown Hospital, created a national firestorm when they posted a video confessing to killing Israeli patients and saying that they would kill more.

The two were immediately dismissed from their positions and are now under investigation by the state police's antisemitic task force.

Like other countries containing Jewish communities throughout the western world, Australia has experienced a spike in antisemitic rhetoric and incidents since October 7 and the war.

NBC reports that Australian Jews have experienced more than 2,000 antisemitic attacks between October 7 and September 2024, three times the figure for the comparable previous period, according to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, the Australian affiliate of the World Jewish Congress.

These incidents include arson attempts against synagogues and daycare centers, spraypainted anti-Israel and antisemitic messages, and at least one attempted bombing attack in a Sydney suburb.

The Australian authorities said they are investigating these incidents seriously and have arrested many suspects, adding that there is suspicion at least some of the attacks were due to foreign funding.