Australian PM Hosts Israeli President Amidst Violent Sydney Protests
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Israeli President Isaac Herzog have convened in Sydney to reinforce diplomatic relations, following Australia's formal recognition of the State of Palestine last year. The leaders attended a solemn ceremony at the Chabad Bondi synagogue on Tuesday evening, honouring the fifteen victims of the tragic terrorist attack at the iconic beach in December.
Consecutive Nights of Intense Demonstrations
This diplomatic engagement unfolded against a backdrop of significant civil unrest. For a second consecutive night, hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside Surry Hills Police Station, protesting President Herzog's controversial visit. The Tuesday assembly followed a massive and violent protest on Monday evening, where police deployed pepper spray, made physical arrests, and hospitalised five individuals.
Footage from the initial protest depicted rallygoers being pepper-sprayed and punched by officers, resulting in twenty-seven arrests. Nine people, ranging in age from nineteen to sixty-seven, were subsequently charged with offences including behaving offensively in public and resisting police. Disturbing clips showed a man with raised hands being repeatedly punched in the stomach by officers, and a group of Muslim men being forcibly removed by police while praying.
Community Leaders Condemn Police Actions
The atmosphere at Tuesday's protest was charged with anger, with goggle-wearing demonstrators chanting anti-police and anti-government slogans, anticipating further use of pepper spray. Josh Lees, spokesman for the Palestine Action Group, told the rally that Herzog should never have been invited. "In order to roll out the red carpet for him they crushed the rights of the people in this city to protest against him. We absolutely will not be intimidated," he declared.
Australia's special envoy to combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, stated that the city had witnessed "a very dark night" involving "unprovoked violence and aggression" from police. NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon described the Monday assembly as a "volatile" crowd, while Premier Chris Minns defended police actions, citing the difficult circumstances of what was "in effect in the middle of a riot."
Injured Protesters Share Harrowing Accounts
Among those hospitalised were an elderly man and woman. Grandmother Jann Alhafny, sixty-nine, suffered a back fracture and described police "just charging at everybody" as she tried to leave. "I got really scared I was going to get suffocated and was yelling for help," she recounted. Grandfather Ian Payne, seventy-eight, who was hospitalised in the bed next to Ms. Alhafny, required six stitches for a deep elbow cut. "I'm not a professional protester but what I saw last night… that's brought me into the real world. It was indescriably bad," he said.
Labor MP Sarah Kaine, who spoke at the rally, rejected suggestions she incited violence and described being shoved and punched by an officer despite identifying herself as a parliamentarian. "I've never seen anything like it, it was so brutal," she stated. Community worker Paula Abood, with forty years of protest experience in Sydney, said she was assaulted twice while trying to help others, claiming she had never witnessed such police behaviour.
Diplomatic Context and Scrutiny
President Herzog was invited to Australia following the Bondi terrorist attack. He has faced international scrutiny over 2023 comments that a UN inquiry suggested could be interpreted as inciting genocide against Palestinians, a claim he denies, arguing his remarks were taken out of context. During the synagogue visit, Herzog told Prime Minister Albanese that the Bondi attack required "broad, serious measures" and praised the Albanese Government's hate speech laws. The leaders later dined at Kirribilli House, concluding a visit marked by both diplomatic ceremony and civil discord.
