A firefighter pulled a hunting knife on a Jewish paramedic and threatened to “skin him” at a music festival in regional Victoria, a royal commission into antisemitism has heard.
Victorian paramedic Joshua Gomperts told the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion he experienced antisemitism for the first time when he was glassed as a teenager while wearing a kippah.
The royal commission was called to assess the circumstances surrounding the Bondi terror attack, which killed 15 people on December 14 and the spread of antisemitism that preceded it.
Mr Gomperts on Tuesday said some years after being glassed he volunteered as a paramedic at a New Year’s Eve music festival in regional Victoria and was relaxing with other emergency service personnel when a firefighter made a comment about Mr Gomperts’s Jewish heritage.
He said the man pulled out a large hunting knife and told him: “I would skin you the way my family skinned yours in the camps.”
The comment was overheard and responded to by police, with the firefighter’s managers arriving later to replace the music festival crew.
Paramedic recounts synagogue firebombing
In addition to his work with St John Ambulance, Mr Gomperts volunteered with emergency medical service Hatzolah in Melbourne between 2021 and 2025.
He said he attended a protest shortly after the events of October 7, 2023 in which more than 1,200 people were killed by Hamas.
Those involved in the action, journalists and bystanders were injured by pepper spray and objects thrown into the crowd.
A makeshift triage centre was set up at a nearby house, with Mr Gomperts saying he and fellow volunteers “treated anybody and everybody”.
He said security was requested when treating pro-Palestinian protest attendees.
Later in 2024, he said he heard screams over the Hatzolah radio related to the firebombing of Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne’s south-east.
Fire crews were called to the Adass Israel Synagogue in December 2024. (ABC News)
Mr Gomperts said he had not known the nature of the incident until he saw the smoke coming from the building as he approached the scene.
He said he reported the blaze to police, fearing it was a terrorist attack.
“Something didn’t seem right,” he told the commission.
“At the time we thought that there was still attackers around.”
Mr Gomperts said he fled the scene for fear of his safety.
Patient performed Nazi salute
Mr Gomperts experienced antisemitism in the workplace again when he was called to conduct a patient transport from a hospital.
While he was reading the patient’s medical notes, Mr Gomperts said the man in his 90s performed a Nazi salute.
When he asked the patient why he had done so, Mr Gomperts said the man told him he was an “old Nazi” and did not want a Jewish man to touch him.
Mr Gomperts said he and his colleague left the scene and another crew took over.
Mr Gomperts said his colleague had been “appalled” by the patient’s behaviour.
Mr Gomperts, who worked with St John Ambulance, said his colleague had been “appalled” by the patient’s behaviour. (ABC News: Peter Garnish)
But he said not all of his peers have been supportive of his heritage, with one colleague at another emergency incident asking him: “As a Jew, how can you support the killing of babies?”
“I gave him a bewildered look … we hadn’t been talking about Israel,” Mr Gomperts said.Unable to change exam date
The 33-year-old said he also experienced antisemitism at university when he requested to sit an exam on another date due to the test being scheduled on a Jewish holy day.
Mr Gomperts said he was asked to meet with the university board, who advised they could not move the exam based on religious grounds.
“I was quite shocked. I went and sought legal advice,” he said.Jewish mother says ‘olden-day’ antisemitism risks safety of her children
Mr Gomperts said once he had informed the university he had a barrister on call, his request was accommodated.
He said he sat the exam with about four other students who could not attend the scheduled test due to family functions, not religious reasons.
He said none had experienced issues with their requests or been asked to meet with the university board.
The first set of hearings at the royal commission will run until May 15 with a final report due a year from the date of the Bondi attack.
More on the royal commission