NSW Nurses Fired Pending Full Investigation After Antisemitic Video Surfaces

NSW Health has launched an urgent investigation with police into a video of two NSW nurses making antisemitic comments.

Premier Chris Minns confirmed that the two nurses from Bankstown Hospital were identified this morning, and were immediately stood down, pending a full investigation.

In the video, which was posted to social media by Israeli social media personality Max Veifer, showed the two nurses speaking to him via random video call app Chatruletka, which similar to Chat Roulette.

Veifer recorded the conversation, and posted a video on Instagram and TikTok.

In the video, Veifer asks what they would do if an Israeli patient needed treatment. The two nurses enthusiastically tell Veifer they had refused to treat, Israeli patients, and implying that Israeli patients had died.

“I won’t treat them, I will kill them,” says the woman.

The man, who misidentifies himself as a doctor, adds: “You have no idea how many [Israelis] came to this hospital, and I sent them to Jehannam”.

She also tells Veifer, “one day, your time will come, and you will die the most horrible death.”

NSW Police confirmed that Strike Force Pearl, which investigates acts of antisemitism due to a recent uptick in antisemitic acts, had taken over the investigation.

NSW Health secretary Susan Pearce said that “rapid examination” of incidents at the hospital has occurred, in order to investigate the claims that Israeli patients either weren’t treated, or had died. So far, the government investigation hasn’t found any evidence that the claims are true.

Politicians react to “vile” antisemitic nurses video

Plenty of politicians have reacted to the video, including NSW Health Minister Ryan Park, who said it made him feel “sick to [his] stomach”.

“The comments are vile, dehumanising and unacceptable,” said Park.

“Those people subject to that investigation will not ever be working for NSW Health again. There is no place, no place in our hospital and health system for this sort of view to ever, ever take place,” he said.

Park also confirmed he had spoken to staff at Bankstown Hospital, who he said were “upset, embarrassed and felt ashamed”.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the video as a “vile” act of antisemitism.

“The footage is sickening and shameful. These antisemitic comments, driven by hate, have no place in our health system and no place anywhere in Australia,” he said.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and Health Minister Mark Butler made a joint statement, saying they “utterly condemned” the video.

“This video is as chilling as it is vile. The comments made in this video are sickening and totally unacceptable,” they said.

Attention brought to video by right-wing personality Avi Yemeni

City Hub has sighted the video online, but has not sighted the original, raw footage.

Attention was brought to the video by controversial right-wing social media personality Avi Yemeni, who has been the subject of various controversies and misinformation claims.

In 2018, declared himself to be “the world’s proudest Jewish Nazi” at the 2018 demonstration against the imprisonment of Tommy Robinson.