The Australian government announced on Tuesday that it expelled the Iranian ambassador, withdrew its ambassador from Tehran, and suspended its embassy operations there, accusing Iran of orchestrating two anti-Semitic attacks in Melbourne and Sydney. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong stated that the Iranian ambassador and three other Iranian diplomats were given seven days to leave the country. This is the first time Australia has expelled an ambassador since World War II. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said intelligence agencies reached a “very disturbing conclusion” that Iran was behind at least two deliberate anti-Semitic attacks: an arson attack targeting the Louis Continental cafe, which serves kosher food in Sydney’s Bondi suburb in October 2024, and another arson attack on the Adas Israel synagogue in Melbourne in December 2024. Neither attack caused casualties.

Albanese described these as “exceptional and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign state on Australian soil,” aimed at undermining social cohesion and sowing discord. He also suggested Iran might be behind other anti-Semitic attacks in Australia. Consequently, Australia declared Iranian Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi persona non grata and ordered him and three other diplomats to leave within seven days. Australia also withdrew its ambassador from Iran and suspended embassy operations in Tehran.