SYDNEY, Australia, Sept. 27 (JTA) — A leading Australian stock-brokerage firm has publicly apologized and accepted resignations from two employees following revelations of anti-Semitism. The moves came after court transcripts revealed that employees of J.B. Were & Sons had made anti-Semitic comments regarding a Jewish-owned company. The transcripts were from a case concerning share purchases in a mining company controlled by Joseph Gutnick, a prominent Australian Jewish businessman. There were references to “dirty Jews” in the transcripts that were made public. Gutnick said further “anti-Semitic statements of the grossest and most repugnant kind” were in transcripts not released. Terry Campbell, the brokerage firm’s executive chairman, sent a letter to all clients, condemning “conversations between J.B. Were & Sons staff members containing comments and language that was unacceptable and offensive to Mr. Joseph Gutnick in particular, the wider Jewish community and the community in general.” He wrote that the firm had made “staff and management changes” in addition to apologizing to Gutnick and leaders of major Jewish organizations. Australian Jewish leaders and Gutnick accepted the firm’s apology.
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