Families of Jewish Australians killed in the Bondi shooting have demanded that Anthony Albanese call a commonwealth royal commission to investigate antisemitism and questions about law enforcement issues surrounding the terror attack that claimed 15 lives.
In an open letter to the prime minister, relatives of 11 of the victims killed at the Bondi beach Hanukah event on 14 December say Jewish families feel unsafe at schools, at work, at home and in public spaces.
They called for the federal government to convene a powerful inquiry into the shooting - which Albanese has argued against.
"We demand answers and solutions," the letter said. "We need to know why clear warning signs were ignored, how antisemitic hatred and Islamic extremism were allowed to dangerously grow unchecked, and what changes must be made to protect all Australians going forward.
"Announcements made so far by the federal government in response to the Bondi massacre are not nearly enough."
The emotional plea from families of most of the Bondi victims adds weight to growing calls for a sweeping federal royal commission into the terror attack, including questions about intelligence, law enforcement and firearms laws.
One of the alleged shooters, Naveed Akram - who has been charged with dozens of offences including 15 counts of murder - had been investigated by Asio in October 2019 for alleged associations with individuals involved in a reported Islamic State cell. His father was later approved for a gun licence.
The federal Coalition opposition and others in federal parliament have backed calls from Jewish community groups for an inquiry to investigate the broader issue of antisemitism in Australia.
Albanese has so far resisted such calls, saying federal authorities would cooperate with a royal commission ordered by the New South Wales state government and instead calling a narrow inquiry, led by the former Asio chief Dennis Richardson, into the national intelligence and law enforcement community - a step the former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who has led calls for a royal commission, rubbished as "bullshit".
The prime minister has said that a federal royal commission would take too long and that he wanted quicker answers about changes needed to intelligence or policing agencies.
But the open letter argues "the rise of antisemitism in Australia goes far beyond one state jurisdiction. It is a national crisis that demands a powerful national response."
"Prime Minister, how can you not support a royal commission into the deadliest terrorist attack on Australian soil? Royal commissions have been established for banks and for aged care," the letter reads. "We have lost parents, spouses, children, and grandparents.
"You owe us answers. You owe us accountability. And you owe Australians the truth."
The former Labor MP Mike Kelly, a convener of the Labor Friends of Israel group, told ABC Radio on Monday that a royal commission was needed.
"It has to be done at the commonwealth level," he said. "It's not possible for a NSW commission to compel commonwealth officers and do the deeper dive on the classified materials that those agencies may not be prepared to reveal entirely to a NSW process."
The Bondi families say Jewish Australians "have endured more than two and a half years of relentless attacks."
"Our children feel unsafe at school and university. Our homes, workplaces, sporting fields, and public spaces no longer feel secure. It is an intolerable situation that no Australian should have to endure."
The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, on Monday urged Albanese to change his mind.
"At best, the prime minister is tone-deaf to a grieving nation, to grieving families," he told Channel Nine's Today show. "And they do deserve answers, and he can't be contemptuous to them. He has to open this up.
"Unless you have a commonwealth royal commission, you're not compelling the federal agencies to work with state agencies and to give all the evidence."
As of Monday morning there were still nine patients in Sydney hospitals receiving care for injuries from the shooting, including three in a critical but stable condition.