TEHRAN – A formal government inquiry in the Australian state of New South Wales has fully exonerated the Islamic Republic of Iran from any involvement in a series of “antisemitic attacks”, exposing the baseless nature of the accusations that led Canberra to expel Iran's ambassador in August.

The findings, delivered in a parliamentary Q&A session, concerned the NSW Police's "Strike Force Pearl," which investigated 14 serious attacks on Jewish properties and institutions. In a clear and unequivocal response to questioning, the police force stated it has "nil holdings" in relation to Iran or its agents perpetrating the incidents.

13 of the 14 attacks were perpetrated by “people associated with and paid by organized crime figures”, the findings revealed. Only a single incident was categorized as “genuine homegrown antisemitic ideology”, which allegedly involved two individuals who made threatening, antisemitic remarks in a live-streamed conversation about Jewish patients at a hospital. They were charged with using a carriage service to menace and threaten violence and ultimately, were not linked to Iran. 

In August, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave Iran’s ambassador seven days to leave the country, saying Aussie Intelligence services had linked Iran to an arson attack on a cafe in Sydney in October last year, and another on a synagogue in Melbourne in December. He provided no evidence for his claims. 

Iran condemned the move, with Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei saying antisemitism was a “Western phenomenon”. “If you look at history, persecution of Jews because of their religion is a matter rooted in Europe; and it is they who must be held accountable for their historical past, which has continued to this day,” Baghaei stated.

Analysts saw Canberra’s unprecedented decision as an attempt to appease Israel and Zionist lobbies in Australia, who had been angered by Albanese’s decision to recognize the state of Palestine. During the press conference he declared the escalatory move against Iran, Albanese said he was going to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), the country's most powerful military branch, as a terrorist organization next.