The Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, announced a comprehensive national inquiry into antisemitism. This decision comes just weeks after a shooting at a Jewish community event in Bondi, which resulted in 15 fatalities.

The inquiry will take the form of a royal commission, the highest level of independent public investigation possible in Australia, led by former High Court judge Virginia Bell.

The commission will examine the nature, scale, and causes of antisemitism in general, as well as the circumstances surrounding the shooting in Bondi. It will also prepare recommendations for law enforcement on strengthening social cohesion and combating extremism.

A report is expected to be completed by December 14, exactly one year after the attack that occurred during Hanukkah celebrations.

The announcement of the inquiry was prompted by weeks of calls from lawmakers across the political spectrum, individual leaders of the Jewish community, and other public figures, including well-known athletes, to conduct a national royal commission rather than a state-level inquiry in New South Wales, where the attack took place. Initially, Albanese suggested that such a large-scale inquiry might take too long, but he later dismissed claims that he was pressured to change his stance.

Albanese has already initiated a review of the activities of Australian security and law enforcement agencies following the shooting, and he stated that this will be part of the royal commission's work.

He also plans to propose legislative changes in response to the attack, including further tightening already strict gun control laws and criminalizing hate speech, which the government argues often falls below the threshold for prosecution.

The shooting during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah occurred last year in Sydney at Bondi Beach, where two armed men opened fire, killing 15 people. Police stated that the attackers were inspired by the ideology of the "Islamic State." One of the attackers was shot dead.