Federal probe launched after vile antisemitic abuse targets royal commission witnesses online

A Federal investigation has been launched after witnesses giving evidence to the royal commission on antisemitism were targeted in what has been described as a campaign of online abuse, harassment, and intimidation.

The royal commission heard evidence between May 4 and 14 from experts, community leaders, and witnesses with lived experience of antisemitism.

Online monitoring by the Dor Foundation immediately identified extreme antisemitic responses targeting those who testified.

The abuse was captured across major digital platforms, including X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

Reflecting on the material, royal commission chair Virginia Bell made a statement at the opening of the hearing on May 26.

“We have received reports from a number of witnesses concerning a dramatic increase in online hate messages after they have given evidence,” Ms Bell said.

“I should indicate that in one instance the matter has been referred to the Australian Federal Police for investigation.

“The commission is keeping a close eye on these instances and recording these offensive social media posts.

“Quite what this undiluted level of hatred and bigotry directed towards members of the Jewish community is thought to benefit by those who post these remarks is lost on me.

“But the commission has as one of its principal objects understanding and assessing the lived experience of antisemitism by members of the Jewish community and it is being informed by conduct of this character.”

A thematic analysis drawn from a detailed review of the most severe posts revealed a combination of text, antisemitic graphics, and AI-generated or photoshopped images of witnesses.

The analysis identified seven distinct themes of abuse, beginning with explicit threats, incitement and calls for violence.

Posts called for witnesses to be “executed,” invoked concentration camps as a proposed solution, called to “kill all Jews”, and expressed genocidal sentiment.

One post explicitly suggested re-purposing oil refineries as makeshift concentration camps, while posts targeting an anonymous witness included explicit accusations of paedophilia and child murder alongside calls for the witness to “burn in hell.”

Dehumanising and degrading language formed a substantial proportion of the posts.

This included animal comparisons such as “cockroach”, “parasite”, “rat”, “vermin”, “dog” and “pig”, as well as characterisations of witnesses as evil or demonic, utilising phrases like “evil dog”, “demonic”, “vile creature”, “dirty f . . . ing blood suckers”, and “filthy scum”.

Posts referred to the Holocaust as the “holohoax,” mocked the figure of six million Jewish victims with the phrase “six goyrillion,” and expressed approval for Adolf Hitler, with one post stating explicitly that “Hitler should’ve completely finished his work”.

Numerous posts represented the Bondi attack and the October 7 Hamas attacks as false flag operations perpetrated by Jews or Israel, with some intended to taunt witnesses whose close family members were murdered or injured.

Individual witnesses were accused of lying, fabricating evidence, and performing victimhood for political purposes.

The Dor Foundation concluded that the material reflects a sustained, multi-platform campaign rather than a collection of isolated incidents.

The Dor Foundation’s chief executive officer Tahli Blicblau said the abuse makes the need for this inquiry “abundantly clear”.

“Abusing witnesses to a royal commission strikes at something fundamental — the principle that Australians can participate in democratic processes without fear. It confirms the importance of the commission’s work,” Ms Blicblau said.

“Many of the people targeted were not public figures. They are individuals sharing deeply personal experiences, but the message sent to them online was unmistakable: speak up, and you will be punished for it.

“The royal commission was established to understand the lived experience of antisemitism. The online abuse that followed the first block of witness testimony is not incidental to the commission’s work — it is the commission’s work. It makes the need for this inquiry abundantly clear, and its ongoing work absolutely vital.”

Ms Blicblau called for greater oversight regarding safety on digital platforms.

“We wouldn’t tolerate this sort of language or conduct in the physical world, and we shouldn’t tolerate it online where it can reach millions of people,” she said.

“Our online spaces have become the front line in the fight against antisemitism. Extreme hate no longer stays on the fringes. It spreads fast, it amplifies fast, and it becomes deeply personal very quickly.”