Former SBS newsreader Mary Kostakidis has claimed that racial discrimination proceedings brought against her by the head of the Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA) form part of a "deliberate campaign to undermine and discredit" her. The allegations are contained in defence documents filed in the Federal Court of Australia.
Details of the Social Media Posts
The case centres on two posts shared by Kostakidis on X (formerly Twitter) in January 2024, which referenced a speech by the late Hezbollah secretary general, Hassan Nasrallah. ZFA chief executive Alon Cassuto lodged a complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission, arguing the posts breached the Racial Discrimination Act. The matter was not resolved and was subsequently escalated to the federal court.
According to the statement of claim, the first post on 4 January shared a video of Nasrallah's speech with the caption: "The Israeli govt getting some of its own medicine. Israel has started something it can’t finish with this genocide." A second post on 13 January, reshared from another account, quoted Nasrallah saying: "If you want to be secure and safe, you have a US passport, go back to the US. You have a British passport, go back to the UK. Here you don’t have a future. From the river to the sea, the land of Palestine is for the Palestinian people only."
Kostakidis's Defence and Counter-Arguments
In her defence filed on Friday, Kostakidis, a prominent journalist and commentator, argues the legal action is designed to cause a "chilling effect" on her and others who have questioned Israel's conduct since the 7 October 2023 attacks. She submits that the term 'Zionist' refers to a political ideology, not a race, and therefore falls outside the scope of the Racial Discrimination Act.
Her legal team also challenged the precision of the claim, noting it could ambiguously cover "Arab ethnicity in the case of an Arab person who follows the Jewish faith" or "a Jewish person who is ethnically Swedish." Furthermore, Kostakidis disputes that Cassuto was genuinely offended, pointing out that he did not complain until 14 July 2024—six months after the posts—and did not request their removal.
Next Steps in the Legal Process
The defence documents state that Kostakidis's 4 January post was fair comment on a matter of public interest and an expression of genuine belief. She denies the 13 January post was made because of the race or ethnic origin of Jewish Australians.
The parties are scheduled for a case management hearing before Justice Andrew McDonald on 18 December at the federal court in Melbourne. The outcome could have significant implications for the boundaries of public commentary, political discourse, and anti-discrimination law in Australia.
