FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Advocacy for Oromia Condemns Bondi Attack, Stands with Jewish Community

MELBOURNE, VIC – 15 December 2025 – Advocacy for Oromia has issued a strong statement condemning yesterday’s horrific attack at Bondi Beach and expressing unwavering solidarity with the Australian Jewish community. The organisation denounced the violence as an attack on shared Australian values and a profound violation of human dignity.

In the statement, Advocacy for Oromia expressed “profound sorrow” for the victims, their families, and all those affected, calling the act an “affront to our common humanity” that inflicts “unimaginable trauma and grief.” The group highlighted the particular cruelty of the timing, noting the attack occurred on the first day of Hanukkah—a celebration of “light, faith, and joy”—thereby framing it as “an especially disturbing act of hatred, antisemitism, and terrorism.”

“Such violence strikes not only at one community, but at the very heart of Australia’s shared values: compassion, respect, and peaceful coexistence,” the statement read.

The advocacy group emphasised that terrorism and hate have no place in Australia, warning of the deep and lasting scars such events leave on the entire national fabric, creating fear and heartbreak far beyond the immediate victims.

A Call for National Unity and Compassion

In response to the tragedy, Advocacy for Oromia issued a call for unity, urging Australians to draw strength from the nation’s diversity. “Our strength has always resided in our diversity—in people of all faiths and cultures, from over 236 backgrounds, standing side by side in empathy and mutual respect,” the statement affirmed.

The organisation declared its firm solidarity with Jewish Australians, reaffirming a “shared commitment to peace, dignity, and our common humanity.” It advocated for a collective response rooted in compassion and unity rather than fear and division.

“Let us respond not with fear, but with compassion; not with division, but with unity,” the statement concluded. “May we support one another, honour those who have been impacted, and continue building an Australia where every person feels safe, valued, and supported—in both body and mind.”

About Advocacy for Oromia: Advocacy for Oromia is an organisation dedicated to promoting human rights, justice, and the welfare of the Oromo people, while engaging in broader humanitarian and solidarity efforts within the Australian and global community.

The full statement from Advocacy for Oromia is available for review.