Australian Man Faces ‘Public Nuisance’ Charge After Nazi Flag Flown Above Brisbane Synagogue

A 45-year-old man from the eastern Australian city of Brisbane will appear in court next month for allegedly flying a Nazi flag from a window of a high-rise residential building located next to a historic synagogue on Saturday.

After being alerted, Queensland police went to the downtown Brisbane apartment, confiscated the flag, and issued the man a public nuisance notice.

The disturbing incident — taking place on Shabbat at the Brisbane Synagogue, which was built well over a century ago — prompted Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner to tweet, “This is sickening. For someone to fly this symbol of hatred and genocide right above the Brisbane Synagogue on Margaret St. is pure evil. It’s time for this vile flag to be banned in Queensland.”

This is sickening. For someone to fly this symbol of hatred and genocide right above the Brisbane Synagogue on Margaret St is pure evil. It’s time for this vile flag to be banned in Queensland. pic.twitter.com/rgTgrbpPXv

— Adrian Schrinner (@bne_lordmayor) October 30, 2021

He added, “Under the current inadequate laws, this is likely to be classified as nothing more than a low-level ‘public nuisance’. Not good enough!”

Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies Vice President Jason Steinberg stated, “That flag and that symbol, the Nazi swastika symbol, represents one of the most evil moments in human history. For that to appear in 2021 in Brisbane over a synagogue is just atrocious.”

Dr. Dvir Abramovich — chairman of Australia’s Anti-Defamation Commission — said the display of the flag was like “plunging a knife in the heart of Holocaust survivors.”

“Anyone who loves our country will not feel comfortable knowing that there are individuals in our midst who are brazenly and proudly exhibiting a symbol that represents the pure evil that led to the death squads, gas chambers, and the extermination of six million Jews.”

The Community Security Group (CSG) recorded 356 antisemitic incidents in Australia in 2020.

A survey published by the Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies earlier this year found that six in ten member’s of the state’s Jewish community had been targeted by some form of antisemitism.