Australia – Sources
A 31-year-old woman from Pascoe Vale suburb in Melbourne has been charged with assaulting two Muslim women at a shopping center in Epping last week. The incident, which allegedly targeted the women due to their head coverings, has sparked widespread condemnation and raised concerns about Islamophobia in Australia.
According to local media reports, the woman grabbed and choked a 30-year-old pregnant woman using her hijab before pushing and slapping a 26-year-old woman in a separate assault just 10 minutes later. Both victims suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
The incident comes just two weeks after Australia passed tough new laws against hate crimes, following a recent string of high-profile antisemitic attacks. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the incident as “reprehensible” and rejected criticism that his government was taking Islamophobic attacks less seriously than antisemitic attacks.
“I take all attacks on people on the basis of their faith seriously, and they should all face the full force of the law,” Prime Minister Albanese told reporters.
Melbourne police are investigating reports of online threats against one of the victims, and Australia’s anti-Islamophobia envoy, Aftab Malik, has called for an end to all forms of hate.
The incident has also sparked alarm among Muslim communities in Australia, with the president of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, Rateb Jneid, describing the government’s response as “grossly insufficient.”
Australia’s government has defended its new laws against hate crimes, describing them as the “toughest laws Australia has ever had.” The laws impose mandatory jail terms ranging from one to six years for the use of hate symbols such as the Nazi salute.
The reforms come amid a growing debate about attacks on Jewish targets in Australia. Last week, two Australian nurses were suspended after a video appeared to show them threatening to kill Israeli patients and boasting about refusing to treat them. In late January, Sydney police found a caravan containing explosives and an antisemitic note.
