An employee at a McDonald’s in Brisbane has reportedly been suspended after chanting “free Palestine” at Israelis asking for a burger.
In a video posted by Israeli channel ILTV, the two Israelis, Asaf and Matan, were asking a female staff member at the restaurant in the Cannon Hill area of the city about a missing food item – a quadruple quarter pounder.
The employee can be heard asking where they are from, adding that they have “an accent”.
When one of the pair replies, “Israel”, the employee immediately says: “Free Palestine. Free, free Palestine.”
One of the Israelis can be heard saying he “does not talk about politics”, and continuing to check on the whereabouts of his burger.
The employee went on to accuse them of being “baby killers”, according to Ynet.
The Israeli website also said McDonald’s subsequently suspended the staff member.
A McDonald’s worker in Brisbane, Australia, told Israeli customers “Free Palestine” after learning Asaf and Matan were from Israel while they were trying to place their order. pic.twitter.com/SdDCg8cAzX
— ILTV Israel News (@ILTVNews) August 23, 2026
In June, the JC reported on testimonies provided to the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion – the inquiry into Jew-hatred launched after last year’s Bondi Beach massacre.
One Jewish teenager described how she had been called “a filthy penny sniffer” while playing with fellow students; a rabbi spoke about finding a mezuzah bearing the words “free Palestine”; and another person said she was asked by her employer to change her “Jewish sounding name” to appease a client with sensitivities about Israel.
The commission also heard about Jewish pupils being regularly taunted, while parents described their fear that their children could be publicly identified as Jewish by their school uniform.
Others told of being routinely targeted with abuse such as “dirty Jewish pigs”, “baby killers”, and “gas the Jews”.
A number of witnesses mentioned losing friendships and employment opportunities. Others said they felt like they were no longer welcome in their own country simply because they openly identified as Jewish or refused to renounce support for Israel.
According to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, Australia’s main representative body for the Jewish community, more than 2,000 anti-Jewish incidents were recorded between October 2023 and September 2024, an increase of 316 per cent on the previous year.
There were 1,654 incidents from 2024-2025, down from 2023-2024, but still around three times higher than pre-October 7 levels.
A spokesperson for McDonald’s Australia told the JC: “McDonald’s sincerely apologises to the customers for their experience. This behaviour is unacceptable and not in line with our values and principles.
“As soon as we were made aware, we took immediate action and the employee has been stood down pending the outcome of our investigation.
“McDonald’s has a zero-tolerance policy for acts of hate and antisemitism in our restaurants and communities.
"We are committed to creating safe, respectful and inclusive environments for our customers and crew, and any behaviour that does not align with these values is unacceptable.”
To get more news, click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.