RZP MK Simcha Rothman was denied entry into Australia on Monday, less than 24 hours ahead of a planned solidarity trip with the country’s Jewish community.
The Australian government’s Department of Home Affairs ruled that Rothman’s opinions mirrored policies of the Religious Zionist Party, which pushed for the elimination of Hamas. This gave grounds for the country to cancel Rothman’s visa.
Rothman told The Jerusalem Post that the government decision was “blatant and obvious antisemitism that gives a tailwind to terror.”
Shortly after the decision, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced that he would revoke the residence permits of Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority.
Sa’ar also said he instructed Israel’s embassy in Canberra to carefully review any official Australian visa requests for entry into Israel.
The Department of Home Affairs’ record of the decision against Rothman cited a lengthy list of reasons for barring Rothman’s entry, based on various media outlet reports quoting his statements.
Among the list of statements the government had taken issue with was from a Post report in September 2024.
Rothman spoke at the University of California, Berkeley, saying, “We will continue to strike at the enemy and fight the terror that surrounds us relentlessly in order to protect and defend the security of the citizens of the State of Israel.”
The Australian government’s assessment concluded that Rothman’s statements “mirror the policies of his Religious Zionist Party, including the elimination of Hamas and the expansion and sovereignty of the Israeli state, and denial of any wrongdoing by Israel against Palestinians and Gaza during the current conflict.
“These statements have been received by members of the Australian community as inflammatory and concerning,” the official document added.
The document underscored that “namely the Islamic community” was at risk from Rothman’s visit. It also cited section 128 of the Migration Act to allow the cancellation of Rothman’s visa to be determined without prior notice.
Rothman said he was invited by the Jewish community in Australia “due to the rise in antisemitic attacks on synagogues and a difficult feeling among the community of estrangement and hostility.”
Responding further to the country’s decision to bar him, Rothman referred to the spike in antisemitic incidents, saying, “Jihadists are attacking Jews in Australia, and in Australia’s mosques, there is incitement to murder Jews and calls for the destruction of Israel.
“But the expression of positions that the Israeli Knesset adopted by a majority of about two-thirds is, in the eyes of the Australian government, provocation and incitement,” he said.
Rothman was scheduled to appear at events in Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne this month, two of which were set to be public. Synagogues and Jewish schools were scheduled to host him, and he was set to meet with targets of antisemitic hate crimes.
The Australian Jewish Association’s chief executive, Robert Gregory, condemned his government’s decision.
“This is a viciously antisemitic move from a government that is obsessed with targeting the Jewish community and Israel,” he said.
Gregory called the timing of the cancellation spiteful and “intended to cause maximum harm to the Australian Jewish community.”
Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said Rothman would not be able to apply for a new visa within the next three years, according to The Guardian.
“Our government takes a hard line on people who seek to come to our country and spread division,” Burke said.
“If you are coming to Australia to spread a message of hate and division, we don’t want you here,” he added. “Under our government, Australia will be a country where everyone can be safe and feel safe.”
Israeli lawmakers condemn Australia
Israeli government ministers and politicians slammed Australia’s decision to deny Rothman’s entry into the country.
Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Minister Amichai Chikli said the decision reflects the “choice to honor the rapists and murderers of Hamas.”
Aliyah and Integration Minister Ofir Sofer, also from RZP, said the decision shows how Australia “has leniency toward terror instead of standing firmly with justice and truth.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich was sanctioned by the Australian government in June, alongside National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Smotrich expressed his support for Rothman, posting to social media, “In the face of all the antisemites in the world, the people of Israel stand behind you and support you.”
Ben-Gvir called the decision “a historic stain and a disgrace for the Australian government” on Monday.
Head of the Blue and White Party, MK Benny Gantz, also affirmed his support for Rothman, despite their differing political views.
Australia has seen a wave of antisemitism since the October 7 massacre.
Less than a quarter of Australians would describe general public attitudes to Jewish people in Australia as very positive, the Post reported earlier this month, citing a survey initiated by the Combat Antisemitism Movement.
Former justice minister Ayelet Shaked were also denied entry into Australia last year.