The daughter of slain Bondi hero Reuven Morrison has told a royal commission that she’d received “hundreds” of threats online since the terror attack including people wishing she had also been murdered.

Sheina Gutnick was the first Jewish Australian to give testimony at the high-profile probe into anti-Semitism and social cohesion in Sydney on Monday, launched in the wake of the massacre of 15 innocent people at a Hanukkah festival at Australia’s most famous beach on December 14.

The inquiry heard that the bloodied attack came after a “summer of terror” for Jewish-Australians following the October 7 Hamas terror attack which triggered an unprecedented wave of hatred targeting Jews.

Ms Gutnick told the hearings that there had been a “massive shift” and growing presence of anti-Semitism in Australia after the war in Gaza and in the lead up to her father’s murder.

The 61-year-old had been killed after he bravely hurled bricks at gunman Sajid Akram following fellow hero Ahmed al-Ahmed’s successful effort to disarm him.

Ms Gutnick claimed “hateful attitudes” had been “formed and normalised” in the lead up to the attack and the rising threat has been “deeply alarming” for the community in Australia.

Ms Gutnick also spoke of the hatred her community has experienced since the Bondi attack, including efforts to downplay the massacre as “only anti-Zionist”.

“I saw widespread claims online and within the media that the attack was not anti-Semitic. I saw people trying to excuse and justify the events as only anti-Zionist,” she said.

“We know that misinformation spreads quickly online, driven by influencers and commentators with agendas presenting distortions as fact and embedding a growing acceptance of narratives that excuse, minimise or even promote violence against Jewish people.

“I have received and seen hundreds of comments, including people stating in response to posts that both I — and the organisation Combat Anti-Semitism Movement — that I should have been killed in the Bondi attack, calls to kill Israelis, comments celebrating violence against Jews, as well as claims that attacks against the Jewish community are false flags staged by Jews themselves for attention or sympathy.”

Ms Gutnick was among the dozen witnesses to appear at Monday’s hearing, many of which chose to give anonymous testimonies.

Commissioner Virginia Bell said she expected several witnesses would use pseudonyms and not be filmed as part of witness protection measures.

Counsel assisting the commissioner Zelie Heger SC said while the commission wouldn’t be able to hear from all Jewish-Australians who provided submissions a wide-cross section of testimonies were scheduled to represent the community.

It includes rabbis, school principals, security guards, aged care workers.

One woman, who remained anonymous, told the inquiry she no longer felt safe to attend synagogues after a string of targeted attacks on Jewish buildings.

“I often don’t go to synagogue anymore because I don’t feel comfortable. I know a lot of Jews who feel exactly the same,” she told counsel assisting Tamara Phillips.

“And when we go to any Jewish function, when we go to synagogue, we make sure that the doors are locked, we make sure that security is where they should be. We make sure we know where the emergency exits are. That is the Jewish way.

“I don’t wear heels anymore, because if I have to run... I always say to my kids, if you have to run away, make sure you’re wearing comfy shoes.”

Other public appearances expected on Monday are Holocaust survivor Peter Halas OAM and prominent Jewish community leader Alex Ryvchin, who is the co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.

Future hearings will be held at atypical hours to allow for international experts to provide evidence, with Ms Bell saying that representatives based in the United Kingdom would appear next week.

Commissioner Bell encouraged people to provide submissions before they close on June 14.

It comes after the Commission released an interim report on April 30 with 14 recommendations to strengthen counter-terrorism responses.

While five that have not been made public, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said those relating to the Commonwealth would be adopted.

The commission has been tasked to report back by the one year anniversary of the attack on December 14, 2026.