A family-themed event being organised by a Zionist Jewish group in Melbourne has been labelled "disgraceful" for "celebrating" Israel's pager attacks in Lebanon last year, which killed dozens of people and injured thousands, including civilians.
The group, the Lions of Zion, is promoting the event — called Lions Nerf Heroes: Beeper Operation — scheduled for 7 December.
Organisers have responded to questions by defending the event, describing it instead as a celebration of Israel's "heroic operation".
A flyer produced by the organisation advertises "fun for all ages", including a battle game with toy NERF guns and Krav Maga training, a self-defence system developed by the Israeli military.
The promotional material states the day will honour one of the most "cunning" missions by Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad.
"Precision and ingenuity made the enemy pay to blow themselves up," the flyer says of the "Beeper Operation".
The United Nations' human rights chief, Volker Türk, said at the time that the attack violated international humanitarian law and constituted a war crime.
"It is a war crime to commit violence intended to spread terror among civilians," he said in a statement in September 2024.
"International humanitarian law prohibits the use of booby-trap devices in the form of apparently harmless portable objects which are specifically designed and constructed to contain explosive material."
Türk said the attack was on civilians and left "many with permanent disabilities and healthcare facilities struggling to cope with the magnitude of the impact on people".
Organisers have confirmed to SBS News that they distributed this flyer. Source: Supplied
Israel's 2024 pager attacks
On 17 September 2024, thousands of pagers carried by members of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah exploded simultaneously, killing people in Lebanon and Syria. The following day, walkie-talkies across Lebanon also detonated.
Some 39 people were killed and more than 3,400 wounded, including children and other civilians who were not Hezbollah members.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office later confirmed he personally approved the operation.
On 17 September 2024, thousands of pagers simultaneously exploded in the southern suburbs of Beirut and other Hezbollah strongholds, in most cases after the devices beeped, indicating an incoming message. Source: AAP / STR/AP
"Such attacks could constitute war crimes of murder, attacking civilians, and launching indiscriminate attacks, in addition to violating the right to life," the experts said in a statement.
While international human rights group Amnesty International called for an international investigation into the attacks.
Australia listed Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation in 2021.
Organisers defend the event
A co-founder of Lions of Zion, Isaac Balbin, told SBS News it was "past time that Jewish people had to apologise for existing and defending themselves".
He did not specify which incidents he was referring to, but said his group was formed in response to what he described as rising threats and hostility towards Melbourne's Jewish community following Hamas' 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel.
More than 1,200 people were killed in the attack, and 251 hostages were taken, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's retaliatory bombardment of Gaza has killed more than 70,000 people, according to local health authorities.
Co-founder of Lions of Zion, Isaac Balbin, has stood by an event that aims to celebrate the 2024 Israeli pager attacks that killed 39 people and injured thousands, including civilians. Source: SBS News
Travitz, who has claimed in social media posts seen by SBS News to be an Israel Defense Forces veteran, has been pictured leading counter-protests at pro-Palestinian rallies in Melbourne on multiple occasions.
At the time this article was published, the event was still scheduled to go ahead.
Balbin described it as "a bit of fun".
"We are teaching that if you are strong, you use that strength to defend, to protect … if you can do it in a way that's incredibly precise and targeted to remove that threat with a minimum amount of damage, you've done an incredible thing," Balbin said.
This isn't the first children's themed event run by Lions of Zion, but it is the first to commemorate the pager operation in Lebanon.
"The operation we're celebrating at the event is possibly one of the most ingenious military operations in all of history," he said.
'How is this even legal?'
The event has sparked concerns among Lebanese and Muslim groups.
Gamel Kheir, secretary of the Lebanese Muslim Association, said he first saw the flyer online in recent days.
Gamel Kheir, secretary of the Lebanese Muslim Association, has raised concerns about the event going ahead. Source: SBS News
"What they're celebrating was the massacre of innocent people," he told SBS News.
"How is this even legal? How are politicians not talking about it? And more importantly, the right-wing media, which is so vocal when it comes to Islamic issues, their silence is disturbing."
Kheir has also questioned the event's relevance to Australia and its potential impact on social cohesion.
"It is about propagating and promoting the actions of the Israel Defense Forces," he said.
"The celebration itself is an affront to Lebanese Australians here, because they were on the other side that felt this. How does that contribute to social cohesion when one group is glorifying and celebrating the death of another group?"
SBS News spoke with another group representing the Lebanese community, which also raised concerns about the event but asked not to be identified out of fear for their safety.
Concerns for social cohesion
The event is scheduled to run a day after the anniversary of the arson attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne.
Two men have been charged over the firebombing last year.
The Australian government publicly named Iran as having orchestrated the attack, and expelled the Iranian ambassador and three other officials in August.
Sarah Schwartz from the Jewish Council Australia said her organisation aims to foster connections between Jewish and Palestinian people. Source: SBS News
"The fact that this is now being celebrated and these deaths are now being celebrated by a local group, it should be really concerning for anyone who cares about anti-racism (and) social cohesion," she said.
"For me, as a Jewish person, it's very concerning to see far-right elements within the community trying to indoctrinate children into this ideology."
SBS News contacted some other, larger Jewish community groups for this story, but they declined to comment.
'Leaders need to step up'
Schwartz called on political leaders to call out the event.
"It's really telling that our leaders are willing to condemn racist events but aren't willing to condemn this event," she said.
Kheir also challenged the Australian government: "You know this is happening now. What’s your position?"
Share
