A horrific antisemitic terrorist attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, on a Sunday in December, during a Hanukkah celebration, resulted in the deaths of 15 people and injured dozens more. The perpetrators were identified as father and son, Sajid Akram (50) and Naveed Akram (24). One of the gunmen, Sajid Akram, was shot dead by police, while Naveed Akram was wounded and is expected to face criminal charges. The victims ranged in age from 10 to 87, and included a British-born rabbi and a young girl. The attack spurred increased police presence in Manchester's Jewish communities and around places of worship, as Assistant Chief Constable John Webster of Greater Manchester Police sought to reassure residents following the incident and a previous attack on Heaton Park Synagogue on Yom Kippur in October.

The attack triggered a significant political controversy involving Dale Vince, a green entrepreneur and prominent Labour donor in the UK. Vince, who has contributed over £5m to Labour, publicly commented on X that the Israeli government was partly responsible for a global rise in antisemitism, linking it to alleged genocide in Palestine. He stated: "Netanyahu wants antisemitism to be a thing, it validates him – he acts to make it so." These remarks drew widespread condemnation. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, called on Keir Starmer to rebuke Vince, labeling his statement "morally repugnant." A Labour spokesperson unequivocally condemned the "barbaric acts of terrorism" and stated that "there can never and should never be any excuses made" for such actions. Vince later clarified his comments, asserting they were not intended to legitimize terrorism or racism, and that his criticism was aimed at Benjamin Netanyahu’s alleged efforts to overlook the impacts of his own actions and to gaslight the public. It was noted that Vince is not a Labour member and had not donated to the party since May 2024.

In Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vehemently rejected accusations from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who suggested that Australia’s earlier recognition of a Palestinian state had contributed to the Bondi attack. Albanese emphasized that "overwhelmingly, most of the world recognises a two-state solution as being the way forward in the Middle East" and called for national unity in support of the Jewish community. Tensions between Australia and Israel have been high, particularly since Israel revoked the visas of Australian diplomats following Australia's decision to recognize Palestine as part of a coordinated international effort to promote a two-state solution and a ceasefire in Gaza. Albanese’s government outlined measures to combat antisemitism, including criminalizing hate speech, banning Nazi salutes, extending funding for security at Jewish community sites, and reinforcing gun laws. He also stressed the importance of distinguishing legitimate criticism of the Netanyahu government from antisemitism, stating that expressions of views on overseas events are acceptable, but blaming individuals for being Jewish crosses a line.

The aftermath of the attack was also marred by a rapid spread of misinformation across social media. A Pakistani businessman named Naveed Akram (30) faced "deep trauma" and his life became a "nightmare" after his photo was falsely circulated online, misidentifying him as one of the shooters, who was actually a different individual also named Naveed Akram (24). Right-wing influencers from India were particularly active in sharing these false claims, linking the alleged origin of the shooter to Pakistan's terror connections without fact-checking. The social media platforms, including X and Google, were criticized for failing to apply warning labels or community notes to these false posts. Similarly, the real hero who tackled one of the gunmen, Ahmed al-Ahmed (43), was also misidentified in viral social media posts and even by X’s AI chatbot, Grok, which spread false information about a different individual being the hero. Other false claims included Muslims setting off celebratory fireworks, which were actually for a Christmas carols event, and the mislabeling of the alleged shooter’s home address on Google Maps as a mosque. These incidents highlighted significant failures in social media's fact-checking systems during deeply divided events.