The perpetrators of the attack at Sydney, Australia’s Bondi Beach, a 50-year-old man and his 24-year-old son, killed 15 Jews and injured 41 more.
The father, who was killed on the scene, had a hunting license and six registered firearms. Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were also found in their homes, and a vehicle was discovered near the attack site holding multiple explosives.
This is Australia's most deadly attack since 1996. The son, who was critically injured, is facing multiple charges including 15 counts of murder, BBC reports.
Dr. Moshe Glick, a West Orange, New Jersey dentist, is president of the state’s chapter of Israel 365, and his synagogue was attacked last year by an antisemitic mob. He spoke with Jody Hice on Washington Watch about the events at Bondi Beach.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu predicted it. First, they come after the Saturday people, and then these jihadists come after the Sunday people. So, it's the will of democratic Western culture society to fight these jihadists around the world, or we'll all be next,” warns Glick.
Now there’s talk of increasing already strict gun laws in Australia.
However, he says this is not about having stricter gun law but about ideological hatred, which is if somebody is willing to kill themselves.
“These two shooters in Australia, they didn't think they were going to kind of hit and run. They were there to kill as many Jews as they could, starting from the youngest victim of 10 years old up to, I believe, an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor. These are not normal people,” states Glick.
It’s about hearts and minds
He explains that this is not a problem that will be fixed by stricter gun laws, another armed security guard, or stronger front doors at churches or synagogues. Civilized people need to defeat evil hearts.
“We as Americans need to stand united and say that this jihadist mentality is a sickening cancer within our society and that we're going to stand up united to fight it,” says Glick. “It's such a deeper, sicker problem, and hopefully, the world is starting to wake up to that fact.”
With all these attacks, Glick says that a lesson to learn is to not to count on being saved by others. Having attended dozens of pro-Israel and anti-jihad rallies, he states that, unfortunately, the police are either overwhelmed or not equipped to handle these things.
“At the end of the day, I think you need to protect yourself,” advises Glick. “I personally have a concealed carrying license, and I think everybody should have one.”
He also addresses the growing support in the Islamist movement to eliminate Israel and the Jewish people who are also battling social media.
“I think so much of it is our generation gets their information from TikTok and Instagram, and I think there's a ton of Qatari money that's being thrown at this to influence public opinion against the Jewish state,” states Glick.
Glick has faced his own share of antisemitic attacks, the most notable happening last year when he said a violent Islamist group came up to the synagogue and began causing problems. It resulted in an Islamist tackling and putting a 64-year-old man in a chokehold, and Glick stepped in and used physical force to separate the two.
“The crazy part is me trying to defend or protect somebody from being literally choked out and killed in front of a synagogue, and I'm the one that ended up getting arrested. That legal case is ongoing.” says Glick, but that is not all. “We're so thankful for the fact that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed FACE Act charges against six individuals and two of these jihadi organizations.”
Help from Trump admin
While still in the early stages, he is thankful for the Trump’s administration response to the case. They are also starting to look into the Essex County Prosecutor's Office, who arrested Glick, and those who have targeted him for antisemitic bias.
So far, Glick is still facing charges on the local level.
He hopes that these major events are catching the attention of both the U.S. and the global community.
“The ceasefire happened already. It's just a way to intimidate and target Jewish people,” informs Glick. “And we know it's the Jews and the Christians. We're in the same boat together. We're the canaries in the coal mine, and we always have been.”
