Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday he was “devastated” by clashes at a Sydney rally protesting the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog but defended police actions during the unrest.
Herzog’s tightly secured four-day trip aims to console Australia’s Jewish community following a December shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach that killed 15 people during a Hanukkah festival.
Chaos broke out on Monday evening in the city’s central business district as police sought to prevent protesters from entering a restricted area. Law enforcement reportedly used pepper spray on demonstrators and members of the media, including AFP journalists, in scuffles rarely seen in Sydney.
“These are really scenes that I think shouldn’t be taking place,” Albanese told local radio. “People should be able to express their views peacefully, but the police were very clear about the routes that were required if people wanted to march.”
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said officers were placed in “incredibly difficult circumstances” and noted that Herzog was attending a memorial for the victims nearby. He added it would have been a “disaster” if protesters had been allowed close to the event.
Police said they had arrested 27 people, including 10 for assaulting officers, and confirmed the use of pepper spray. Videos circulating on social media showed Muslim men praying near Sydney’s Town Hall being pushed and shoved by police, prompting public outrage.
Local Greens lawmaker Abigail Boyd said she was injured by police during the march, posting a photo wearing a neck brace. “I didn’t know that this was what police could do in our state. I feel just absolutely shocked,” she told ABC.
Herzog’s visit is expected to continue until Thursday, with planned meetings with families of the Bondi victims — the deadliest attack on Jews in Australia since Hamas’s assault on Israel in October 2023.
While many in the Jewish community welcomed Herzog’s trip, saying it would “lift the spirits of a pained community”, some progressive groups, including the Jewish Council of Australia, opposed the visit, citing his alleged role in the “ongoing destruction of Gaza”.
Last year, the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry found that Herzog could be prosecuted for inciting genocide after stating that all Palestinians were responsible for the Hamas attack. Israel has rejected the report, calling it “distorted and false” and demanding the body’s abolition.
