By Shane Dowling 

Australia could end up with more victims of the legal warfare being conducted by supporters of Israel then there are victims of antisemitism, and that needs to be looked at and addressed by the federal and state governments.

For example, Justice Darryl Rangiah will hand down his judgment on Friday (18/7/25) for the 9 female lawyers from the “Lawyers for Israel” WhatsApp group and their frivolous and vexatious application for 8 respondents, Larina Alick, Sam White, Calum Jaspan, Michael Bachelard, Bevan Shields, Patrick Elligett, The Age and Fairfax Media Publications, from Nine Entertainment to be charged with contempt of court.

Add the 8 respondents from Nine to journalist Antoinette Lattouf, who was sacked by the ABC because of attacks and lies by the “Lawyers for Israel” WhatsApp group, and journalist Mary Kostakidis, who is being sued by the Zionist Federation of Australia for shining a light on Israel’s genocide and war crimes in Gaza, and that totals 10 media respondents in frivolous lawsuits by supporters of Israel. 

And there are other Australians who have felt the rath from supporters of Israel, such as artist Khaled Sabsabi and pianist Jayson Gillham, but is goes unchecked by politicians.

Israel, via their puppets in Australia, is trying to pressure the Australian government to give preferential treatment to Australian Jews and that was made clear when “Antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal released a plan last week with 49 steps to tackle rising discrimination against Jewish Australians.”

“Segal’s report claimed antisemitism is “ingrained and normalised” in academia and cultural spaces, and said young Australians were being “raised on a diet of disinformation and misinformation about Jews”.” (Click here to read more)

To say antisemitism is “ingrained and normalised” in Australia is a lie and it’s a lie to try and justify Jillian Segal’s position as Antisemitism envoy and the propaganda and lies she is pushing on behalf of Israel.

Jillian Segal’s husband John Roth was exposed supporting anti-Palestine group Advance in February 2025 by The Guardian in an article titled “Liberal party investment vehicle donated $500,000 to rightwing group Advance” which starts off:

A Liberal party investment group donated $500,000 to the rightwing advocacy group Advance last financial year, fuelling speculation from the Greens the two are teaming up to take out the minor party’s influence in the upcoming federal election.

Advance, which has pledged to “expose” the Greens as Australia’s “biggest threat to freedom, security and prosperity”, received more than $15.6m in the 2023-24 financial year, up from $5.2m the year before, according to the latest Australian Electoral Commission annual donation disclosure figures.

Just $914,000, or 5.8%, of the donations’ sources are known with the remaining $14.8m not publicly declared, sometimes referred to as “dark money”.

Advance’s largest declared donor was the Cormack Foundation, best known as a multimillion-dollar investment vehicle for the Liberal party and one of the party’s biggest single donors.

and:

Henroth Investments Pty Ltd also handed the group $50,000 in 2023-24. One of its directors, John Roth, is also a director of the gelato chain Gelatissimo and the husband of the special envoy to combat antisemitism, Jillian Segal. (Click here to read more)

The Guardian reported on the 14th of July “Australia’s antisemitism envoy, Jillian Segal, says she had no involvement in a major donation from her husband’s company to the controversial conservative campaign group Advance, which has strongly railed against overseas immigration, pro-Palestine protests and the Labor government.” (Click here to read more)

The Conversation reported “Early prominent members (and funders) of Advance included storage king Sam Kennard, far-right former president of the Australian Jewish Association David Adler, and climate denier Maurice Newman.” (Click here to read more)

Advance, which has strong Jewish connections via Jillian Segal’s husband John Roth and former president of the Australian Jewish Association David Adler, regularly attacks Palestine in social media posts.

It’s not all negative with many starting to fight back with headlines such as “The Israel lobby stands loudly condemned for its silence“, “Antisemitism plan fails on a number of fronts – a contentious definition of hate is just the start” and “The special envoy’s plan is the latest push to weaponise antisemitism in Australia, as a relentless campaign pays off” which starts off:

One must acknowledge the remarkably effective Jewish community organisations in Australia behind the latest antisemitism report. Collectively, with their News Ltd megaphone, they have successfully badgered the government of the day, cowed the ABC, intimidated vice-chancellors and threatened to defund arts organisations.

With the ability to garner prime ministerial dinners, a battalion of lobbyists has gained access to editors, duchessed willingly seduced journalists keen to enjoy junkets and corralled more than 500 captains of industry to subscribe to full-page ads against antisemitism and thereby blurring political argument with prejudice and bias. It is no surprise that this relentless propaganda effort has paid off.

The appointment of Jillian Segal to special envoy to combat antisemitism, routinely described as an “eminent corporate lawyer”, does not seem to bring scholarly expertise to the role. With respect one might argue that Segal’s previous position as president of ECAJ, an unequivocal advocate for Israel as the Jewish homeland, should have disqualified her for the role.

Numbers have been cited as evidence of an escalation of antisemitic incidents that had apparently occurred after 7 October 2023. Of course, nuance or accuracy isn’t paramount in this campaign. So, 16 students at Sydney University feeling intimidated by the slogan “from the river to the sea” was reframed as 250 complaints submitted to parliamentary inquiry.

A childcare centre that was not in fact a Jewish centre was added to the list of terrifying antisemitic attacks. The individuals police believe were hired by criminals seeking a reduction in their prison sentences who allegedly placed combustible material in a caravan became a “terrorist plot”, the hooligans (still unidentified seven months later) who firebombed the Addas Israel synagogue brought out a rash of politicians to deplore the incident. (Click here to read more)

And while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the government jump when the likes of Jillian Segal say so, they ignore widespread racism. The SMH reported:

Days before the release of the Segal report, Judge Elisabeth Armitage found that the fatal police shooting of Kumanjayi Walker, an Indigenous man killed by a Northern Territory Police officer in 2019, was “a case of officer-induced jeopardy” by a “racist” constable with a “contempt for accountability”. While relentless lobbying by pro-Israel groups has produced a vast amount of media coverage and political activity in recent weeks, the muted reaction to Armitage’s finding is jarring.

The appointment of Segal as a special envoy and her subsequent recommendations are infused with the notion that protecting Australian Jews from antisemitism is more important than the battle against racism for other minorities. Such an approach fuels antisemitism rather than curbs it. The fight against racism never stops, and it is only effective when impacted communities unite to challenge it.

The Albanese government is now confronted with a similar choice to that presented to the ABC. How it responds will have profound implications for the health of democracy and social cohesion in this country. (Click here to read more)

Conclusion

So while Jillian Segal is demanding more rights for Jews in Australia her husband John Roth is funding attacks by Advance on Palestinians on social media and the government thinks it is ok for Jillian Segal to keep her position as Antisemitism envoy.

And while Jillian Segal, her husband John Roth and Advance are up to their tricks various supporters of Israel are abusing the law to silence journalists and anyone else who shines a light on the genocide in Gaza and war crimes committed by the Israeli government.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his government need to think long and hard about their next steps because the Israeli lobbyists could end up destroying them like they destroyed the ABC management.

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