Antisemitism 'allowed to come into the open' says Bondi victim's daughter

Her father Reuven Morrison was "deeply proud" of being Australian, Gutnick said in her evidence. He had fled the USSR at the age of 14 and later met her mother on Bondi Beach.Now though, Gutnick said Bondi held "complicated" feelings for her, despite having beautiful childhood memories at the famous beach.Another person giving evidence, known only as AAL, described how he had moved to Australia from South Africa in the 1980s and loved it from the start."I treated Australia as home from the day I stepped off the plane," said AAL, appearing to break down during his testimony. "I have to admit things have changed - I have to think very seriously whether this is the country for my grandchildren."The royal commission said that as of Monday morning, nearly 7,500 submissions had been made. The first block of public hearings, which lasts until 15 May, will focus on lived experience of antisemitism.Last week, former High Court judge Virginia Bell, who is overseeing the commission, published an interim report giving 14 recommendations including prioritisation of gun reforms and extending the policing arrangements for Jewish high holy days to other Jewish events as well.Ahead of the public hearings on Monday, Bell acknowledged a "sharp spike" in antisemitism that had been "mirrored in other western countries," adding that it was linked to "events in the Middle East"."It's important that people understand how quickly those events can prompt ugly displays of hostility towards Jewish Australians simply because they're Jews," she said.