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Melbourne’s Israeli and Iranian communities share cautious optimism — but also deep anxiety — as US military operations reshape the Middle East and antisemitism surges at home.

There is both optimism and a high level of vigilance among the Israeli and Iranian communities in Melbourne regarding where the conflict in the Middle East is headed in the coming weeks.

Both groups of people united in their joy at the death of oppressive Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, outside State Parliament House last month.

Some even held aloft pictures of a rat as their depiction of the man responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent democratic-seeking citizens under his autocratic rule.

But despite US President Donald Trump declaring his defence force was on the verge of victory after the month-long Operation Epic Fury operation targeting the Iranian dictatorship, there is both hope and anxiety at what lies ahead.

United in Grief, Divided by Uncertainty

Elianna, 23, and a former student at Deakin University, was one who celebrated the death of Ayatollah Khamenei alongside several thousand Iranians and Australians outside State Parliament House in Melbourne last month.

But the woman of Israeli descent is a realist – she has closely monitored the continual bombardment which innocent people in her home country have been subjected to from IRGC missiles in recent weeks.

Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah has also been launching missiles over the border at Israel.

And sadly, Elianna can only predict a rise in antisemitism – which has been rife in the Victorian capital – as a result of the conflict in the Middle East.

“I do believe the fight between Hezbollah and Israel will be for longer,” she told The Daily Declaration.

“It’s becoming more complicated as the days progress. The problem from the war in the Middle East is antisemitism throughout Australia and the world is skyrocketing in ways that we didn’t see before the war.

“It’s very sad. There was an attempted car ramming at Glen Eira, and no one has heard about that.”

Antisemitism Hits Close to Home

Elianna said she had to cut short her studies at Deakin University because she was physically targeted for standing up for Israelis.

She believes that Australian education institutions have fallen to leftist influences where there is now a strong anti-Western sentiment prevalent in the way the arts and history are taught.

“I can only go into the city when I’m surrounded by a larger contingent of Jews. What other group of people has to deal with that? It’s not a way to live anymore,” she said.

“I left university. I was actively fighting against antisemitism, and it just got too much for me.

“There was physical violence. I was like ‘I’m not going back’. This is at multiple universities – not just mine.

“I think the major problem at our universities is the younger generations are basically taught to love terrorists.”

Elianna said many Israeli-Australians living in Melbourne were now making plans on when they can return to their country of origin when it becomes safe.

“I know for a fact that the majority of Israeli-Australians are thinking of how they can leave,” she said.

“They’re waiting for Israel to re-open so we can leave. It’s becoming more and more dangerous.

“And because it’s getting more dangerous, the government is just acting like it’s an average day.

“Obviously, we had the Bondi terrorist event that happened.”

On 14 December 2025, an antisemitic Islamic State (IS)-inspired terror attack was carried out during a celebration of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah at Bondi Beach.

Alleged gunmen Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed Akram, killed a total of 15 people in the worst terror attack in Australian history.

Every week, there are calls for a global intifada at pro-Palestine rallies in Melbourne, and Elianna holds genuine fears that there could be an even worse terror event in her home city.

The 6 December 2024 firebombing of the Adass Israel Synagogue and a spate of antisemitic confrontations and graffiti have constantly put Israeli-Australians living in Melbourne on edge.

“Bondi was the first, but it wasn’t the last. We know that the next attack might happen in Melbourne, and there tend to be worse incidents in Melbourne,” she said.

“So, we truly believe we’re going to have an event with worse casualties than Bondi.”

A Warning for the West

Sepide, 42, said her father went missing under the IRGC regime 26 years ago, when he was 47.

She has been living in Melbourne for 12 years.

“They wanted to kill me as well because I’m not silent. It’s so dangerous,” she said.

“My daddy was 47. He was really young. We don’t know what happened to him.

“It was 11 in the morning.”

Sepide said all freedom-seeking Iranians approved of the American military operation in her country of origin, where the IRGC regime is currently being decimated.

She added that this outlined how dire and unsafe the situation had become for democratic-seeking Iranians.

“It’s sad what’s happening, but we’re happy it has,” she said.

And she cautioned against complacency in Australia, warning that the spread of Sharia Law can happen rapidly if it is not properly monitored by the authorities.

“We know how bad things are, and how quickly things can change,” she said.

Mel-Iran rally organiser, Kian Azizi, echoed these thoughts.

He pointed to the United Kingdom under left-wing Prime Minister Keir Starmer as a prime example.

“What we’re really upset about is the fact that people of the West and the majority of politicians in the West are not standing up against them (radical Islamists),” he said.

“By the people, I mean a little bit of ignorance, which we Iranians and dual nationals are doing our best to create that awareness.

“It’s really embarrassing. Look at what’s happened to Europe. The European countries are gone.”

Starmer has been roundly criticised for being soft on mass migration, and parts of England are now no-go zones, with reports that Sharia Law is fast spreading throughout the country.

Violent crimes and rape gangs have also drastically increased among many recent immigrants who are not compatible with Judeo-Christian values.

Last year, British MP Rupert Lowe claimed that foreign rape gangs operated in at least 85 local authorities across the United Kingdom.

Announcing the findings in an X post, Lowe said:

“Our inquiry has shown that this rotting scandal is more widespread than thought – hundreds of thousands of lives have been ruined at the hands of predominantly Pakistani rape gangs.”

This failure among lawmakers in developed countries to stand up to immigrants who do not assimilate into Western culture is a genuine concern for Azizi.

In light of the well-documented ISIS brides issue and UK-based antisemitic Islamic preacher, Bengali citizen Mizanur Rahman Azhari, being granted entry to Australia before being deported halfway through a speaking tour, Azizi believes this nation could fast follow the UK.

That is if it does not get tougher on its immigration vetting processes.

“I don’t know how far we should go until we get to this realisation that these radical Islamic movements are aiming for nothing but destruction of the Western community, including here in Australia,” he said.

“England is the only country in Europe which has not yet recognised the IRGC as a terrorist organisation.

“Keir Starmer has been super embarrassing for Europe and for the West, unfortunately, which is what Trump has said.

“What they’re missing is moral clarity. It’s the moral clarity that President Trump and the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, have.”

Iranian-Australians Cheer US Intervention

Kian Azizi believes the democratic-seeking Iranian community approves of the US military’s strikes on Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps combat bases because they’ve had to live under the oppressive regime for 47 years. Picture: Josh Spasaro.

Azizi said Trump was a once-in-a-generation President, and the US military’s intervention has been welcomed by a majority of Iranians.

“I believe he’s been the most consequential American President for the past 50 years,” he said.

“What he’s doing is historic. I think it’s changing history.

“And we support the humanitarian support we’re getting, as opposed to what the media wants people to see.

“It’s not military aggression in Iran – it’s military and humanitarian support for Iranian people so that we can set the conditions for the regime to collapse.

“And then our people can come out and finish off the job.”

Ali is another Iranian-Australian who has participated in rallies in Melbourne for democracy in his homeland.

He said spreading messages of support for the US-Israel military effort in the Middle East was more important than ever at a time when innocent Iranian citizens have had their internet cut off by the ruthless IRGC regime.

“It’s important to spread our message through social media because our internet has been shut down for one month,” he said.

“All mobile phones have been shut down.

“Most Iranian people love Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi (exiled in the US), and we want him as our leader.”

Iranian-Australian political activist Omid Rokni said eliminating the IRGC was crucial for a safer and more democratic world.

This is despite a rise in petrol prices due to retaliatory actions which the regime has carried out, in particular its closing of the Strait of Hormuz, a major global oil route.

“Iran is a sponsor of terror, and it is spreading hate everywhere. If they (US military and Israeli Defence Forces) can cut off the head of the snake, it’ll affect them everywhere,” Rokni said.

“Not just in the Middle East, but Asia and Australia – everywhere. Then I think we can all breathe easier.”

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Featured image: Big crowds calling for the end of the IRGC regime have been a regular feature outside Victorian Parliament House every Sunday. Picture: Josh Spasaro.