by Joshua Marks, Amelie Botbol
The Australian Jewish Association slammed the move ahead of a speaking tour, which bars the lawmaker from entering the country for three years.
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| Committee chairman MK Simcha Rothman leads a Constitution, Law and Justice Committee meeting at the Knesset, in the Israeli parliament on June 9, 2025. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90. |
Australia has denied entry to Israeli parliamentarian Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionism) ahead of a planned solidarity visit with the country’s Jewish community, which faces escalating antisemitic attacks, the Australian Jewish Association announced on Monday.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke justified the move by claiming Rothman was coming “to spread a message of hate and division,” Australia’s ABC News reported. However, the AJA confirmed on Monday that one of the written reasons provided by the government for the ban was that Rothman’s statements calling for “the elimination of Hamas … have been received by members of the Australian community as inflammatory and concerning.”
Australia has listed Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist organization for financial sanctions since 2001.
LABOR STANDS UP FOR HAMAS
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) August 18, 2025
AJA can confirm that one of the written reasons the Australian Government gave for banning Knesset Member Simcha Rothman is because his statements calling for "the elimination of Hamas.....have been received by members of the Australian community as… pic.twitter.com/9yLO2TwrSD
In addition to the visa cancellation, Rothman received a three-year ban from traveling to Australia. It is reportedly the first major action taken by Canberra since last week’s announcement that Australia intends to recognize a Palestinian state at next month’s United Nations meeting.
“This decision by the Australian government is essentially caving to terror. There is no other way to see it. The messages they accused me of spreading are simply that Hamas is bad and Israel is good—positions that enjoy broad consensus in Israel and in any freedom-loving country,” Rothman told JNS on Monday.
Rothman argued that views such as condemning Hamas, urging the world to side with Israel, holding Hamas responsible for Palestinian suffering and warning that a Palestinian state threatens Israel’s survival are not just his personal positions but reflect a resolution supported by two-thirds of the Knesset. He maintained that Australia’s decision was, therefore, directed not at him individually but at the State of Israel.
“Australia is afraid of Islamic terrorists threatening its government. That is the real reason for banning my entry. And I am not alone—eventually, Australia will learn that appeasing terror never works. It always leads to more terror. Israel learned this at a heavy price on Oct. 7,” said Rothman, referring to the Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Rothman said he was ready to appeal the decision if asked, but would follow the lead of Australia’s Jewish community on the matter.
Israeli Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli harshly criticized the decision in an X post, calling it “an extension of the Albanese government’s disgraceful choice to honor the rapists and murderers of Hamas.” The ban “reflects a broken moral compass, discrimination and a grave assault on free speech,” he added.
The Albanese government’s decision to bar MK Rothman (and previously former minister Shaked) from visiting Australia🇦🇺 is a direct extension of his disgraceful choice to honor the rapists and murderers of Hamas.
— עמיחי שיקלי - Amichai Chikli (@AmichaiChikli) August 18, 2025
It reflects a broken moral compass, discrimination, and a grave…
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the leader of the Religious Zionism Party, in a message addressed to Rothman on X wrote: “In the face of all the antisemites in the world, the people of Israel stand behind you and support you.” He urged Rothman to continue “proudly voicing Israel’s stance,” adding: “We won’t stop until complete victory.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced retaliatory measures, including revoking the visas of Australian representatives to the Palestinian Authority, and instructing Israel’s embassy in Canberra to closely scrutinize any future visa requests.
I decided to revoke the visas of Australian representatives to the Palestinian Authority. The Australian Ambassador to Israel was just notified on the matter.
— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) August 18, 2025
I also instructed the Israeli Embassy in Canberra to carefully examine any official Australian visa application for…
“While antisemitism is raging in Australia, including manifestations of violence against Jews and Jewish institutions, the Australian government is choosing to fuel it by false accusations, as if the visit of Israeli figures will disrupt public order and harm Australia’s Muslim population. It is shameful and unacceptable!” Sa’ar wrote on X.
AJA CEO Robert Gregory called the last-minute visa cancellation “a viciously antisemitic move from a government that is obsessed with targeting the Jewish community and Israel.”
In a statement posted to X, Gregory said that Rothman, chair of the Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, had been scheduled to meet with victims of antisemitism, visit Jewish institutions and address Jewish schools and synagogues.
Albanese Government cancels senior Israeli politician’s visa at the last minute.
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) August 18, 2025
Statement from AJA CEO Robert Gregory
"Simcha Rothman is chair of the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee and a senior member of the Israeli Government.
The purpose of Mr Rothman’s…
“I have just returned from Israel and can attest that there is growing alarm there about the situation for Jews in Australia under the Albanese government,” Gregory wrote, emphasizing that Rothman’s trip was in no way connected to current events in the Middle East.
The cancellation was “spiteful and intended to cause maximum harm to the Australian Jewish community,” Gregory asserted, saying that the paperwork was filled out correctly and on time and the visa was approved, only to then be canceled on the day that Rothman was to have headed to the airport.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been highly critical of the anti-Israel policies put forth by the left-wing Labor government led by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, linking them to recent antisemitic incidents.
The Australian government in June canceled the visa of Hillel Fuld, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen and prominent pro-Israel social media personality. In November last year, Canberra declined to grant an entry visa to former Israeli justice minister Ayelet Shaked, who had planned to travel there to attend a pro-Israel event.
Australia joined four other countries in June imposing sanctions on Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for allegedly “inciting violence” against Palestinians in Judea and Samaria.
“The message from the Albanese government to Jews is clear and we urge all Jews to seriously consider whether it is safe for them to visit Australia under this government,” Gregory wrote.
“AJA is hearing from increasing numbers of Australian Jews who feel unwelcome under this government and are planning to leave. It seems the government is happy to replace them by importing thousands of Gazans,” he continued.
While Rothman was banned for three years, the Australian government, in the months leading up to January 2025, granted nearly 1,000 three-year humanitarian visas—mostly to Palestinian nationals (though some were also offered to Israelis)—fleeing the Israel-Hamas conflict. Many recipients were already in Australia on visitor visas, thereby gaining the right to work, study and access social benefits.
“Israel is fully justified in taking strong measures in response to this and we have briefed contacts in the Trump Administration, who are also concerned about events in Australia,” Gregory concluded.
Joshua Marks, Amelie Botbol
Source: https://www.jns.org/viciously-antisemitic-australia-bans-israeli-mk-rothman/
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