DANIEL AGHION

“On behalf of the Executive Council of Aus­trali­an Jewry, we con­grat­u­late Ben Carroll on his elevation to the position of Premier of Victoria.

“In recent years, Ben has shown himself to be a true friend of the community, always receptive to our concerns, regularly attending communal events, and demon­strat­ing a firm under­stand­ing of the realities on the ground in Israel and the Palestini­an ter­rit­or­ies.

“Together with the Jewish Community Council of Victoria, we very much look forward to building on this rela­tion­ship and working with Ben in his new role.

“At the same time, we express our gratitude to outgoing premier Jacinta Allan for her will­ing­ness to engage with the community over the past three years.

“She assumed the role just 10 days before the horrific atro­cit­ies of 7 October 2023, which not only changed the face of the Jewish world as we know it, but also led Victoria into one of the darkest and most chal­len­ging periods in its history. On the morning of 8 October, Jacinta tele­phoned me and expressed her horror at the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel and support for the Jewish community.

“While we didn’t always achieve the outcomes we desired, a number of measures that did improve the security of the community were imple­men­ted on her watch, and her door was always open to us. She was always empath­et­ic and prepared to listen.

“We thank Jacinta for her support and wish her well moving forwards.”

Daniel Aghion is President of ECAJ