Australia to expel Iran’s ambassador after linking Tehran to antisemitic attacks in Sydney and Melbourne

The Australian government has accused Iran of being behind at least two antisemitic attacks in Sydney and Melbourne. In response, Australia has decided to expel Iranian Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi along with several other Iranian diplomats, giving them seven days to leave the country. Australia has also suspended operations at its embassy in Iran, with all Australian staff evacuated to a third country..

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that the Iranian regime is responsible for "extraordinary and dangerous acts of aggression" and attempts to "undermine Australian cohesion."

"The Australian people want two things. They want killing in the Middle East to stop, and they don't want conflict in the Middle East brought here. Iran has sought to do just that," Albanese stated.

"They have sought to harm and terrorise Jewish Australians and sow hatred and division in our community," he added.

Albanese also announced that Australia intends to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization. The IRGC, an elite military force, safeguards the ayatollahs’ rule at home while exporting terrorism and violence across the Middle East and beyond. Last year, Israel called for the IRGC to be designated as a terror group.

Australia’s intelligence chief, Mike Burgess, revealed that the country has received intelligence that Iran ordered last year’s terror attack against the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne and a second attack at Lewis' Continental Kitchen.

"They put lives at risk, they terrified the community, and they tore at our social fabric. Iran and its proxies literally and figuratively lit the matches and fanned the flames," Burgess explained. He warned that the Iranian regime was planning more terrorist attacks on Australian soil.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong noted that it was the first time since World War II that Australia has decided to expel an ambassador from the country.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei responded to Australia’s diplomatic move, warning that “any inappropriate diplomatic action will be answered in kind.”

Baghaei dismissed the accusations as “completely baseless,” describing them as part of a broader Western narrative against Iran. He further claimed that Australia’s move was motivated by its own internal affairs. Tehran has consistently denied involvement in global terror plots despite substantial evidence of its complicity.

Earlier this month, 14 Western governments condemned the regime.

“We are united in our opposition to the attempts of Iranian intelligence services to kill, kidnap, and harass people in Europe and North America in clear violation of our sovereignty,” the Western nations said in a joint statement.

In May, the United Kingdom arrested several Iranian nationals after British intelligence learned they were planning a terror attack against the Israeli embassy in London.

Last October, a European report revealed that the Iranian regime is actively cooperating with criminal networks to target Israelis, Jews and Iranian dissidents in various European nations.