Pain lingers for Jews, Palestinians despite ceasefire

A ceasefire in Gaza has been broadly welcomed within Australia's Jewish and Palestinian communities but pessimism remains about what it means for social harmony.

Designated terrorist group Hamas and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire deal that would begin the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the besieged enclave and the release of hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

There was enormous relief many of the hostages would return home, Rabbi Benjamin Elton from Sydney's Great Synagogue said as he called for the return of all captives.

"There won't be relief until everyone is back and accounted for," the synagogue's chief minister told AAP.

But the exchange with Hamas was bittersweet as there could be "a terrible cost that's paid in the future" resulting from the prisoner release.

"In terms of the release of convicted terrorists and murderers and others, that's always very difficult ... in terms of what that means for Israel's safety going forward," Dr Elton said.

He expressed relief for innocent people in Gaza, saying he hoped the ceasefire would lead to respite and recovery.

"We recognise that this war has led to enormous suffering for the people in Gaza," he said.

But the sharp rise in anti-Semitism was unlikely to be curbed by the ceasefire because Dr Elton contended the phenomenon in Australia wasn't connected to the day-to-day war in Gaza.

This was due to the war winding down but the scourge increasing domestically, he said.

A spate of attacks included the arson of a Melbourne synagogue and attempted arson of one in Sydney.

"It's now, it seems, out of control and we don't know when we wake up in the morning what well see has taken place on the streets of Australia," Dr Elton said of anti-Semitism.

"These anti-Semitic elements that have been under the surface has been let rip and they need to be controlled again."

Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni welcomed the ceasefire but called for Israeli accountability for the death toll and humanitarian crisis as he expressed outrage at babies freezing to death in Gaza.

"Gaza is an apocalypse zone, the UN estimates it will take 15 years to clear the rubble," he said.

"The fact that the world has allowed it to go on for this long is shameful and history will judge those leaders very poorly."

Mr Mashni said there had been a disparity in political commentary and the media over how incidents of anti-Semitism were covered compared to anti-Arab racism.

"Nobody spoke about October 6 (2023) or the 76 years of Palestinian repression before that," he said.

"When we open our TV screens, read our newspapers and see the difference in language, see the difference in treatment of Australians - we're Australian - that is what is destroying the social fabric of this country, we need to be treated equally."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called for more humanitarian aid to flow unimpeded into Gaza as he welcomed a ceasefire.

"Australians wanted to see the hostages released, they want to see an end to conflict, they also don't want conflict brought here," he said on Thursday.

It came as his attorney-general met with family members of hostages during a trip to Israel, saying the ceasefire must make the return of remaining captives a reality.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said the atrocities of October 2023 couldn't be forgotten as he welcomed the peace agreement.

Mr Dutton called for the government to focus on anti-Semitism and the safety of Jewish Australians.

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