By Angélique Bouchard
EXCLUSIVE – In a firm and comforting message broadcast this Sunday, President Donald Trump urged American Jews to celebrate Hanukkah without fear after the antisemitic terrorist attack that bloodied Bondi Beach in Sydney.
“Celebrate proudly – be proud of who you are,” Trump told Fox News, categorically refusing to let hate and violence intimidate Jewish communities. This tone of defiance and resilience, typical of the Trump administration’s approach to antisemitism, contrasts with the hesitations seen in some Western governments and reminds us that firmness, not complacency, is the only credible response to this global threat.
The Bondi Beach attack, which claimed at least 15 lives during the first night of Hanukkah on December 14, 2025, is not an isolated or purely local event. It crystallizes a deep geopolitical dynamic: the resurgence of transnational antisemitism, exacerbated since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, now articulated around a hybrid ideological axis blending radical Islamism, anti-Zionist far left, and conspiracist far right. Two years after the initial trigger, data from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and other observatories confirm that this hate is not subsiding; it is restructuring, globalizing, and, in some contexts, turning into mass terrorist acts.
À lire aussi : ANALYSE – L’antisémitisme mondial en 2025 : Trump appelle à la fierté juive face à la tragédie de Bondi Beach
A Targeted Attack on the First Night of Hanukkah
The “Chanukah by the Sea” event, organized by the Chabad Center of Bondi, brought together over 1,000 people – families, children, tourists – to light the first Hanukkah candle on this iconic Sydney beach. Around 6:45 p.m. local time, two gunmen armed with assault rifles opened fire from a pedestrian bridge overlooking the crowd, causing panic for several minutes.
The toll, still provisional, stands at least 15 dead, including a child and assistant rabbi Eli Schlanger, a key event organizer, as well as dozens of hospitalized injured. One gunman was killed by police, the other gravely wounded. A brave civilian, Ahmed al-Ahmed, a local merchant of Levantine origin and Muslim, disarmed one of the attackers at the cost of gunshot wounds – an act hailed as heroic by authorities.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the attack as an “act of pure evil antisemitism” and “targeted terrorism against Australian Jews on the first day of Hanukkah, which should be a day of joy.”
“An attack on Australian Jews is an attack on all Australians. There is no place for this hate, this violence, and this terrorism in our nation. We will eradicate it.” – Anthony Albanese, Australian Prime Minister.
International Reactions and Accusations Against the Australian Government
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not mince words during a government meeting in Dimona, directly accusing the Albanese government of inaction in the face of rising antisemitism.
“I warned Albanese in an August letter that your government’s policies encourage antisemitism. Inaction has fostered a climate of growing hostility toward Jews. History will not forgive hesitation and weakness – it will honor action and strength.” – Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu praised the Muslim civilian who stopped one terrorist but insisted on the need for firm governmental response.
Yael Eckstein, president of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, reacted on “Fox & Friends Weekend”:
“Terrorism doesn’t stop in America, Europe, or Australia. It targets not only Jews but also Christians. The response to this darkness is light.” – Yael Eckstein.
À lire aussi : ANALYSE – Suivez l’argent : Les marchés annoncent la fin prochaine de la guerre en Ukraine
An Initial Explosion, Then Lasting Structuring
October 7, 2023, acted as a global catalyst. The ADL’s Audit of Antisemitic Incidents 2024, published in April 2025, recorded 9,354 acts in the United States – an absolute record, up 344% over five years. The January 2025 Global 100 Index reveals that 46% of the world’s adult population (2.2 billion people) adheres to at least six antisemitic stereotypes, a figure doubled since 2014 and particularly high among those under 35 (50%).
A joint Tel Aviv University-ADL report notes a decline from the late-2023 peak but insists on a “new normal”: incidents remain two to three times higher than pre-2023 levels in most Western democracies. This persistence is not circumstantial; it reflects an ideological recomposition where radical anti-Zionism often serves as a legitimate vector for older ethno-religious hate.
Published on April 22, 2025, this annual audit (the 46th since 1979) records 9,354 antisemitic incidents in the United States (harassment, vandalism, assaults), or:
• +5% compared to 2023 (8,873 incidents, already a record).
• +344% over 5 years.
• +893% over 10 years.
This is the highest level ever recorded.
Breakdown:
• Harassment: 6,552 incidents (stable).
• Vandalism: 2,606 (+20%).
• Assaults: 196 (+21%, affecting 250 victims).
• For the first time, 58% of incidents (5,452) include references to Israel/Zionism.
Most affected locations:
• College campuses: 1,694 incidents (+84% vs. 2023), representing 18% of the total (record proportion).
• Public spaces: +19%.
• Non-Jewish K-12 schools: 860 incidents (-26%, but likely underreported).
Most affected states: New York (1,437), California (1,344), New Jersey, Florida.
The ADL notes that the post-October 7, 2023 wave continued into 2024, with no return to normal. Preliminary 2025 data (e.g., New York) indicate continued high levels.
The Global 100 Index of Antisemitism (January 2025): Worldwide Attitudes at a Historic High
This survey, conducted with Ipsos among over 58,000 adults in 103 countries/territories (representing 94% of the world’s adult population), measures acceptance of 11 classic antisemitic stereotypes.
Key results:
• 46% of global adults (about 2.2 billion people) adhere to at least 6 of 11 stereotypes – record level, doubled from 2014 (26%).
• Among those under 35: 50% (vs. 37% among those over 50).
• Holocaust knowledge: Only 48% recognize its historical accuracy; 39% among youth.
Regions:
• Highest: West Bank/Gaza (97%), Kuwait (97%), Indonesia (96%).
• Lowest: Sweden (5%), Norway/Canada/Netherlands (8%).
• Americas: 24%; Western Europe: 17%; Oceania: 20%.
The ADL calls this a “global emergency,” amplified by social media, populism, and the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Other Major 2025 Reports
• Portrait of Antisemitic Experiences in the U.S., 2024-2025 (October 2025): Surveys of nearly 5,000 American Jews show antisemitism has become a “pervasive force” affecting identity, mental health, and community participation. 55% experienced at least one incident in 2024-2025; many hide their Jewish identity.
• Campus Report Card 2025 (March 2025): Of 135 universities evaluated, notable progress (36% improved grades), but persistent issues. 5 A’s, several F’s.
• Reports on faculty and academic associations: Growing antisemitism in 20 professional associations; 42% of Jewish faculty feel alienated.
À lire aussi : DÉCRYPTAGE – Chili : Kast, le tournant conservateur comme symptôme d’un épuisement politique
Geopolitical Analysis: Three Convergent Axes of Globalized Antisemitism
Contemporary antisemitism operates through an unprecedented convergence of three distinct ideological poles, often antagonistic on other issues but united in hostility toward Jews and/or Israel.
- Radical Islamism and Its Transnational Networks
Since October 2023, discourses from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran have found global echo amplified by social media. The Bondi Beach attack, while under investigation, bears markers of terrorism inspired by this movement: explicit targeting of a Jewish religious event, use of automatic weapons, Hanukkah symbolism.
- Anti-Zionist Far Left and Twisted Intersectionality
In Western universities and progressive circles, radical anti-Israel rhetoric – often framed in terms of “decolonization” or “genocide” – has crossed into antisemitism. The ADL notes 58% of U.S. incidents in 2024 include Israel references.
- Conspiracist Far Right and the Great Replacement
Theories of “Jewish global control” resurge in white nationalist movements, amplified by alternative platforms. This tripartite forms a globalized antisemitic ecosystem where state and non-state actors mutually reinforce each other.
Iran: The State Epicenter and Financial Backer of Contemporary Antisemitic Hate
At the top of this ecosystem is the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has elevated antisemitism to state doctrine. Since the 1979 revolution, Tehran denies the Holocaust, organizes antisemitic cartoon contests, and publicly calls for Israel’s destruction – a state it calls a “cancerous tumor.”
But since the 2000s, Iran has systematized this hate by projecting it through a sophisticated proxy network, what the Pasdaran call the “axis of resistance.”
• Hamas: Funded hundreds of millions annually, trained and armed by the Revolutionary Guards, Hamas carried out the October 7, 2023 attack – the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. Its charters and media relay visceral antisemitic propaganda, exported to Western social media.
• Hezbollah: Based in Lebanon, this Iran-created and controlled Shia movement has an arsenal of over 150,000 rockets aimed at Israel. Its antisemitic rhetoric – blending Holocaust denial and conspiracism – irrigates global Shia communities and inspires sleeper cells.
• Houthis in Yemen: Logistically and financially backed by Tehran, they adopted the slogan “Death to America, death to Israel, curse on the Jews.” Their Red Sea attacks disrupt global trade while spreading antisemitic ideology in the Arabian Peninsula.
• Shia militias in Iraq and Syria: Groups like Kataeb Hezbollah or Asaib Ahl al-Haq relay attacks on Israel and spread antisemitic propaganda in the Arab world.
These proxies do not limit to military operations: they wage hybrid ideological war. Their satellite channels (Al-Manar for Hezbollah, Al-Alam for Iran), Telegram and TikTok accounts, and funding of radical NGOs or mosques in the West amplify antisemitic tropes, turning local hate into a global phenomenon. The Bondi Beach attack, even if by locally radicalized individuals, bears the indirect imprint of this propaganda machine: targeting a Jewish religious event echoes calls for violence against “Zionists” spread by these networks.
Without Iran, these groups would be marginalized and under-equipped. Tehran provides not only weapons and money but the ideological framework legitimizing antisemitism as a tool against “Western arrogance.”
A No-Compromise Conclusion: Choose Firmness or Accept Defeat
The Bondi Beach tragedy is not an isolated tragic accident; it is a symptom of an ideological and terrorist war that Iran and its allies wage against Jews and, beyond, against Western civilization itself. Two years after October 7, antisemitism is no longer a relic of the past: it is an active, structured, funded threat ready to strike anywhere, even on a family beach in Sydney.
President Trump understands this: in the face of this darkness, there are no half-measures. “Celebrate proudly” is not a mere exhortation; it is a call to resistance. Free democracies must now choose sides without ambiguity: apply maximum pressure on Iran and its proxies, dismantle online and university hate networks, protect Jewish communities without fail, and reject all ideological complacency, wherever it comes from.
For history is clear and merciless: those who hesitate in the face of antisemitism end up swept away by it. The light of Hanukkah triumphed over darkness more than two thousand years ago; it will triumph again today – but only if the West as a whole finally decides to defend it with the same fierce determination that Israel has shown since its founding. There is no other path to victory.
À lire aussi : Le Grand Entretien avec le général Pinatel (2S) – Bilan stratégique et géopolitique de l’année 2025
#GlobalAntisemitism, #Antisemitism2025, #BondiBeachAttack, #TrumpStatement, #JewishPride, #HanukkahAttack, #AntiJewishHate, #Terrorism2025, #IsraelUnderAttack, #IranProxyWar, #HamasTerrorism, #HezbollahThreat, #RadicalIslamism, #FarLeftAntisemitism, #FarRightConspiracy, #ADLReport, #Global100Index, #CampusAntisemitism, #WesternDemocracies, #SydneyTerrorAttack, #JewishCommunities, #MiddleEastGeopolitics, #HybridWarfare, #AxisOfResistance, #IranRegime, #TrumpLeadership, #SecurityOfJews, #FightAntisemitism, #DefendTheWest, #GeopoliticalAnalysis, #AngéliqueBouchard, #LeDiplomate, #JewishIdentity, #ReligiousFreedom, #CounterTerrorism, #PoliticalIslam, #GlobalThreat, #StrategicClarity, #NoCompromise
Diplômée de la Business School de La Rochelle (Excelia – Bachelor Communication et Stratégies Digitales) et du CELSA – Sorbonne Université, Angélique Bouchard, 25 ans, est titulaire d’un Master 2 de recherche, spécialisation « Géopolitique des médias ». Elle est journaliste indépendante et travaille pour de nombreux médias. Elle est en charge des grands entretiens pour Le Dialogue.