"[Iran had recruited the man through a] complex web of Iraqi-based militia groups."

"Valuing his high wealth and criminal connections, the IRGC protected him and supported his illegal enterprises."

"That changed dramatically after ASIO publicly named Iran’s involvement in the arsons."

"This person’s Iranian backers lost their enthusiasm and after further pressure from Australian and local law enforcement, they threw him in prison."

"[The investigation into the Sydney and Melbourne attacks was] one of the most difficult and detailed in recent ASIO history."

"[Iran continued to view Australia as a target and could] conduct or inspire acts of arson, vandalism or even assassinations on Australian soil."

"[Antisemitism was often seen through a narrow lens. But it could come from] diverse sources simultaneously, challenging traditional definitions, assumptions, and approaches."

Mike Burgess, director general, Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO)  

Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) Mike Burgess (L) speaking next to the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police Reece Kershaw during a press conference in Canberra. (Handout / AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE / AFP)

 

Australia's chief of its spy agency, speaking on Wednesday revealed that an Australian citizen in Iran, a senior member of the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Guard, had orchestrated a major antisemitic firebomb attack on a Sydney synagogue, during Mike Burgess's annual threat assessment. Of great concern was the fact that an Iranian group actively engaged in terrorism could orchestrate additional attacks, even an assassination, in Australia.

 

Following the mass murder of 15 people at Bondi Beach in December of 2024, in an antisemitic-inspired terror attack carried out by a father-and-son attack team, ASIO had faced public scrutiny with the revelation through a report by an independent inquiry into antisemitism that pointed out counterterrorism investigations had seen a reduction in funding. 

 

Speaking in Canberra, Mr. Burgess defended the agency he represented, pointing out that it faced "concurrent, cascading and compounding threats", as he revealed details of investigations conducted into two firebombing attacks with clear antisemitic motivations, traced to the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

 

In 2024, revealed this chief of the country's spy agency, an Australian citizen based in Iran had planned, recruited and ordered the firebombing of a Bondi restaurant -- Lewis' Continental Kitchen --which became the first major antisemitic attack to take place in Australia. "This person is a senior agent of the IRGC al-Quds Force, running its networks around the world". 

 

Mr. Burgess described state hackers penetrating a critical infrastructure network, outlining how a country -- obviously the Islamic Republic -- had attempted to coerce eight people, five of them Australians, to return to their birth country, in an effort to silence them. In the same token, he described the situation where foreign agents sought to recruit Australians to reveal to them official secrets relating to AUKUS, Australia's security partnership with Britain and the United States. 

"This person is a senior agent of the IRGC Qods Force, running its networks around the world.

"We know more about him than he realises, including the name of his superior in Iran and the department he works for. Department eleven-thousand, a covert unit within the IRGC Qods Force, is responsible for coordinating operations in the West."

"[Unable to name him due to investigation], But I want them to understand this: we know who you are, we know what you’ve done and we know who you work for." 

"Whether online or in the real world, when intolerance is tolerated, when violent language and violent acts are left unchecked, they become normalised, reinforcing the impression they are acceptable and compounding the likelihood of further violence."

ASIO director general Mike Burgess  

This handout photo taken and released by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet on December 10, 2024, shows Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (2nd R) and Rabbi Shlomo Kohn (R) visiting the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne on December 10, 2024, after it was set ablaze on December 6. (Handout / DEPARTMENT OF PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET / AFP)

"[Australian companies seen to have links to Israel were being targeted with] repeated acts of vandalism and arson by far-left activists."

"My point is that violent antisemitism is not a single, or simple, intelligence problem."

"[The firebombing of a synagogue] can simultaneously be criminal arson, foreign interference, the promotion of communal violence and politically motivated violence."

"And when Iran directs the arson, it’s an act of state-sponsored terrorism."

"Great power competition is driving an insatiable appetite for strategic advantage. As a result, espionage and foreign interference are at extreme levels, while preparation for sabotage is growing in scale and sophistication."

"At the same time, politically motivated violence – which incorporates terrorism – remains an acute concern."

Australian Security Intelligence Organization director general Mike Burgess