Published: 8 January 2026
Last updated: 6 May 2026
Former High Court Justice Virginia Bell has been appointed to lead a Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion, in the wake of the Bondi Chanukah massacre.
The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the Royal Commission this afternoon, acknowledging that pressure from the victims' families and the Jewish community had influenced his decision, after he earlier expressed uncertainty about the value of a Royal Commission.
The Royal Commission will run alongside the Independent Commonwealth Review into security by Dennis Richardson, which is investigating whether ASIO and the Australian Federal Police performed effectively and why they failed to prevent the terrorist attack.
Albanese emphasised the need for the Royal Commission to be conducted quickly, and said it will be required to report by 14 December 2026, the one-year anniversary of the attack by two shooters, which killed 15 innocent victims and left many others wounded.
The Royal Commission will:
- investigate the nature and prevalence of antisemitism, examining its key drivers in Australia, including religious and ideologically motivated extremism and radicalisation
- make recommendations to assist law enforcement to control immigration and security agencies to tackle antisemitism, including through improvements to guidance and training within law enforcement, border control, immigration and security agencies to respond to antisemitic conduct
- Examine the circumstances surrounding the Bondi terrorist attack, in concert with the Richardson review
- Make other recommendations arising out of the inquiry for strengthening social cohesion in Australia and countering the spread of ideological and religiously motivated extremism.
Comments1
Steve Holstein8 January at 08:07 am
The Bondi Royal Commission is ‘front page’ news in Israel. This interest stems not only from the scale of the tragedy but from the fact that Israelis are still calling—on deaf ears—for their own independent state commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacres. This demand has intensified following revelations regarding the Qatari funding scandal, where the Netanyahu government was found to have facilitated years of payments to Hamas, with further allegations emerging regarding “consulting fees” involving the PM’s own office. While the Netanyahu government, having so far resisted investigation, now insists on a process where it effectively investigates itself, the Australian Royal Commission stands as a stark contrast. As renowned Israeli journalist Ben Caspit succinctly puts it: “There are civilized countries in the world.'”