SBS News In Depth

Australia's social cohesion has come under scrutiny in the wake of the Bondi Beach mass shooting, while multicultural communities have come together in vigils and public acts of solidarity with Jewish Australians. The tragic mass shooting, deemed a terror attack by New South Wales Police, saw 15 people killed at a Hanukkah festival on Sunday. As leaders debate tougher laws against hate speech and extremism, Muslim and Jewish voices alike have warned against collective blame, as fears grow of a potential Islamophobic backlash.

In the wake of the Bondi beach tragedy last weekend, Sydney has welcomed new mental health support systems. New South Wales Health is offering support for anyone affected - both directly and indirectly.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has unveiled a mid-year budget update marked by fiscal restraint, highlighting a $5.4 billion improvement to the deficit alongside critical new funding for the CSIRO and community security. However, the outlook remains fraught as rising inflation threatens real wage growth and persistent spending pressures in childcare and the NDIS continue to squeeze the bottom line.

SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves speaks with Shane Oliver from AMP about the implications the government's Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook will have on inflation as Kyle Rodda from Capital.com looks through the day's sharemarket action including Westpac's change of heart on interest rates

On the 14th of December, as an antisemitic mass shooting targeted a Hanukkah festival at Bondi Beach, several heroes emerged, most notably Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Muslim man of Syrian origin who courageously disarmed one of the attackers. But he was not the only Middle-Eastern Muslim to risk his life to put a stop to the attack. There was another Middle-Eastern Muslim man who risked his life to disarm the other shooter. However, his lawyer says due to his Middle-Eastern appearance and all-black attire, he was thought to be one of the shooters. As a result, he was shot at by police, then set upon by a small crowd of people.