Australia will establish a national Royal Commission into antisemitism, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday, bowing to widespread pressure following the country’s worst terrorist attack left 15 dead at a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

The decision follows weeks of growing pressure on Albanese’s center-left Labor government from Jewish community leaders, senior executives, sections of the media and the opposition to call a Royal Commission in the wake of the massacre.

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The inquiry will be led by former High Court justice Virginia Bell, who served on Australia’s top court for 12 years from 2009 to 2021.

Albanese said at a press briefing in Canberra that the inquiry will investigate the nature and prevalence of antisemitism in Australia and the circumstances surrounding the Bondi attack, and be tasked with making recommendations to strengthen social cohesion and counter the spread of ideological and religiously motivated extremism in Australia.

In Australia, a Royal Commission is the highest form of inquiry on matters of public importance. It has the power to summon witnesses to appear before it and to request individuals or organizations produce documents as evidence. Such inquiries are only established in rare and exceptional circumstances and can take years to conclude.

Recent Royal Commissions have included inquiries into misconduct in the financial sector, the aged-care industry, and suicides among the defense forces and military veterans — which took three years and made 122 recommendations to the government.

Albanese had initially resisted one, arguing that an overarching national process risked delaying urgent reforms needed to prevent a repeat of such an attack. Instead, he pointed to more immediate measures, including a review of Australia’s intelligence and law-enforcement agencies, as well as highlighting that New South Wales is holding a state Royal Commission.

READ MORE: Australian PM announces terms for review into Bondi Beach attack

The prime minister had previously announced tougher hate speech laws targeting those who promote violence or racial vilification, new aggravated offenses, and heightened powers to act against organizations and individuals spreading division.

“I’ve taken the time reflect, to meet with leaders in the Jewish community and most importantly, with many of the families of victims and survivors of” the Bondi attack, Albanese said Thursday. “Here in Australia, light will always prevail over darkness.”

He said the process wouldn’t be drawn out, with Bell asked to report before Dec 14, 2026 — which will be the first anniversary of the massacre. 

While parliament is scheduled to reconvene in early February, lawmakers could be recalled earlier — potentially as soon as next week — to debate Albanese’s proposed hate-speech reforms, according to local media reports.

New South Wales — where Bondi is located — is conducting its own Royal Commission into the attack and last month tightened laws on gun ownership and public assembly through urgent legislation.

READ MORE: Australia set for major overhaul of gun laws

Australia already has some of the world’s strictest gun laws, with firearm ownership treated as a regulated privilege rather than a right, requiring applicants to demonstrate a genuine need and pass extensive background checks.