Iran Denies Role In Antisemitic Attacks As Australia Cuts Ties

Iran on Tuesday rejected Australia’s accusation that it orchestrated two antisemitic arson attacks, after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the suspension of diplomatic relations with Tehran.

Albanese said intelligence findings linked Iran to the October 2024 firebombing of Lewis Continental Kitchen, a kosher café in Sydney, and the December torching of Melbourne’s Adass Israel Synagogue.

Police have arrested suspects in both cases, which authorities believe were carried out by hired local criminals.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei dismissed the allegations as baseless but confirmed ongoing talks with Britain, France, and Germany over looming sanctions.

He said Tehran remained committed to uranium enrichment for energy, even as Western concerns mounted following June’s Iran-Israel war that left its nuclear facilities bombed and international monitoring suspended.