Amanpour – Episode Summary

Date: December 15, 2025
Host: Bianna Golodryga (sitting in for Christiane Amanpour)
Primary Topic: Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann Reflects on the Sydney Hanukkah Shooting Tragedy

Main Theme

This episode of Amanpour centers on the tragic mass shooting at a Hanukkah celebration on Sydney's Bondi Beach, which left over a dozen dead, including Holocaust survivors, children, and a rabbi. Through a poignant interview with Melbourne Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann, the episode explores the grief and trauma within Australia’s Jewish community, the broader issue of rising anti-Semitism, the spiritual and communal response to darkness, and the pressing call for government action.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Tragedy and Community Grief

• Overview of the Attack:
  • A mass shooting at a Hanukkah event in Sydney's Bondi Beach kills over a dozen people, including a 10-year-old girl, two rabbis, and a Holocaust survivor ([01:50]).
  • The suspects were a father and son; the father was killed by police, the son awaits charges.
• Impact on the Jewish Community:
  • Rabbi Kaltmann describes the interconnectedness of the Jewish communities in Sydney and Melbourne, making the loss deeply felt nationwide ([03:49]).
  • He personally knew several victims; the tragedy struck family, friends, and mentors.

Personal and Spiritual Response

• Shock and Disbelief:
  • “None of us could believe that something like this could happen on the sun-kissed shores of Australia in such an idyllic, beautiful, iconic place as Bondi Beach.” — Rabbi Kaltmann ([03:55])
• Emphasis on Hanukkah's Message:
  • “Each night of the festival, we light one candle...the point is to dispel the darkness, to push it away… but ultimately, light and love overcomes the bad, the evil, the darkness.” — Rabbi Kaltmann ([06:28])
  • Instructs congregants to summon the courage of the Maccabees, drawing on centuries of resilience.
• Resilience Amid Fear:
  • Ongoing public worship is an act of spiritual resistance.
  • “We've been here before. This is in essence, the story of being a Jew...each time we've persevered, we've gotten up, we've shaken ourselves off, and we've continued on with love, with hope.” — Rabbi Kaltmann ([07:57])

Rising Anti-Semitism and Pleas for Action

• Community Safety Concerns:
  • Rabbi Kaltmann criticizes government inaction on repeated warnings about escalating anti-Semitism.
  • “For two years, anyone listening? We have been telling them that something's not right and the evidence was in front of our eyes. When synagogues are being firebombed, that's not normal.” ([09:52])
• Immigrant Experience and the Loss of Safety:
  • Many Australian Jewish families are descended from Holocaust survivors.
  • Australia was seen as a safe haven, but recent years shattered that sense of security ([10:45]).
• Call to Australian Leaders:
  • Urges elected officials to take Jewish fears seriously and address the societal menace of anti-Semitism.

Hope, Solidarity, and Acts of Heroism

• Heroic Acts During the Attack:
  • By stander Ahmed Ahmed intervened at great personal risk, likely saving lives ([12:40]).
  • “That is the epitome of being an Aussie, of standing up and trying to do what you can to assist, to be there for somebody...he put his life on the line and thank God he survived.” — Rabbi Kaltmann ([13:23])
• Community Healing and Gathering:
  • Vigils and menorah lightings draw thousands, showing wider Australian support for the Jewish community.
  • “Synagogues are inundated with flowers and messages of hope and support. This evening we got together...in Federation Square here in Melbourne. Thousands of people came together to light the menorah and a vigil.” ([14:28])
• Faith in Overcoming Darkness:
  • “Australians say, enough is enough. We need to put an end to this horrific antisemitism. And it's going to happen. Believe you me, it's going to happen.” — Rabbi Kaltmann ([15:08])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Tragedy:

  “The community here in Australia, the Jewish community at least, is heartbroken. We're shattered. We're in the middle of just an unimaginable nightmare situation.”
  — Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann ([03:49])

• On Hanukkah’s Spiritual Message:

  “The point is to dispel the darkness, to push it away, to recognize and acknowledge that there is evil, there is darkness in the world, but ultimately, light love overcomes...”
  — Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann ([06:33])

• On Pleas to Leaders:

  “When Jews tell elected members that they feel unsafe, they feel insecure, something doesn't feel right…to bat it away and call it hysteria or hyperbole or just ultimately ignore it is something that now we are dealing with the repercussions.”
  — Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann ([09:53])

• On Solidarity and Heroism:

  “That is the epitome of being an Aussie, of standing up and trying to do what you can to assist, to be there for somebody. And in this case...he put his life on the line and thank God he survived.”
  — Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann ([13:23])

• On Community Resilience:

  “Now is the time where Australians say, enough is enough. We need to put an end to this horrific antisemitism. And it's going to happen. Believe you me, it's going to happen.”
  — Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann ([15:12])

Key Timestamps for Reference

• Introduction and Context: [01:50–03:48]
  Setting up the tragedy and welcoming Rabbi Kaltmann.
• Personal Community Impact & Grief: [03:49–05:32]
• Hanukkah’s Symbolism, Perseverance: [06:28–08:21]
• Addressing Fear, Community Safety, and Anti-Semitism: [08:22–12:33]
• Heroism and Broader Community Response: [12:34–15:38]
• Closing Remarks and Condolences: [15:39–15:57]

Summary Flow

This episode provides a raw, heartfelt look at the aftermath of a hateful attack on one of Australia’s smallest and most closely-knit communities. Through Rabbi Gabi Kaltmann’s words, listeners sense the depth of communal pain, interwoven family bonds, and enduring trauma. The rabbi’s reflections on Hanukkah impart a timeless lesson in spiritual resistance: that even in times of greatest darkness, the resolve to add light, to gather, and to love must prevail over hatred.

The episode is as much a condemnation of violence and neglect as it is a call to action for both government and society at large. Rabbi Kaltmann’s testimony, paired with moving anecdotes of heroism, leaves the listener with grief—yet also with glimpses of hope, solidarity, and a refusal to yield to fear.

For those who have not heard the episode, this summary captures both the emotional and factual core of the conversation—focusing on lived experience, spiritual fortitude, policy failure, and the unyielding hope that tragedy must, finally, bring the community closer together and force lasting change.