The NSW premier has rejected accusations his government is targeting the state's Muslim community with a review of hate speech laws amid tensions over the conflict in Gaza.
The state government on Friday announced former NSW Supreme Court chief justice Tom Bathurst would lead a review of laws that make it an offence to publicly threaten or incite violence against anyone on the grounds of race, religious belief or affiliation.
Announcing the measure, Premier Chris Minns said it was vital that the people from different communities who called the state home had legal protection.
But over the weekend the Australian National Imams Council sent a letter to Mr Minns outlining their concerns with the review, including that Muslims had been singled out in the process.
In the letter, council president Imam Shadi Alsuleiman said the NSW government had disregarded the advice of the Faith Affairs Council and he was considering resigning from the group as a result.
"My concerns deepened after reading the joint media statement issued by the premier and acting attorney-general, dated 19 January, which discussed reviewing similar laws in other jurisdictions," he said.
"The statement's alignment with the narratives of major pro-Israeli and anti-Palestinian media outlets and individuals appears to specifically target my community."
Mr Alsuleiman said Australia's Muslim community had been mourning the loss of family members, friends and others since the outbreak of the conflict in Gaza, but there appeared to be "little sympathy" from the premier.
"Instead, there appears to be an urgency in acting only at the request of one community," he said.
"This perceived lack of balance has added to our community's grief, distress, and disappointment."
Mr Minns on Monday confirmed he had received the council's letter but rejected the criticisms raised in it, including that he had failed to show sympathy for Palestinian victims of Israeli strikes following Hamas's October 7 attack.
"I've said many times that I'm concerned about the death of innocent civilians, even though it's a war on the other side of the world, and regardless of which side of the conflict that they're on," he told reporters.
"The bottom line here is I've got responsibilities in NSW to protect community safety, to stop hate speech and to protect community cohesion."
Mr Minns said the government wanted advice as soon as possible regarding prospective hate speech law changes, rather than waiting for the outcome of a lengthy review by the Law Reform Commission.
"We've asked an external and respected figure in legal circles to report back to the NSW government. I haven't had anyone publicly question (Mr Bathurst's) expertise or his credentials," he said.
"Hate speech laws are complex ... if there are laws that protect community cohesion, then we should be exploring them."
