Members of the Jewish community across the world woke up Sunday to yet another fatal attack — something that has become all too common for those of the faith. The attack Sunday on Sydney’s Bondi Beach, which has been declared a terrorist incident, has left at least 15 people dead and 40 hospitalized in what police say was an incident targeting Jewish people.
The shooting took place as hundreds gathered to celebrate the first of eight nights of Hanukkah, a holiday which takes place close to the winter solstice during the longest nights of the year. A millennia-old tradition, it celebrates the triumph of light over darkness: the victory of the Maccabees over the Syrians and the rededication of the Second Temple of Jerusalem around 165 BC. Today, that history is resonating even more with Jewish communities across the world following the latest in a wave of antisemitic attacks in Australian cities.
Authorities in New York, Washington, DC, and New Jersey have said they’re deploying additional resources to Hanukkah celebrations and synagogues. In 2024, data provided to CNN by the Anti-Defamation League showed threats to Jews in the US tripled in the one-year period since the deadly October 7 terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas.
CNN’s Dana Bash speaks with Deborah Lipstadt, author of "Denying the Holocaust," and Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown speak with Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee. #CNN #News