{"id":1403,"date":"2026-02-09T15:50:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T15:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=1403"},"modified":"2026-02-09T15:50:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T15:50:00","slug":"tear-gas-and-pepper-spray-used-on-protesters-opposing-israeli-presidents-visit-to-australia-world-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foreignnewstoday.com\/?p=1403","title":{"rendered":"Tear gas and pepper spray used on protesters opposing Israeli president’s visit to Australia | World News"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Police have reportedly used pepper spray and tear gas as thousands of people held protests in Australia over the visit of Israeli president Isaac Herzog.<\/p>\n

Mr Herzog is in the country this week after an invitation from Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese in the aftermath of the shooting at a Hanukkah event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach in December<\/a><\/strong> that killed at least 15 people.<\/p>\n

But some people have criticised the trip, accusing Mr Herzog of being “complicit” in the large number of civilian deaths in Gaza and angry at how Israel<\/a><\/strong> has waged the war against the militant group Hamas.<\/p>\n

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In Sydney, \u200dthousands gathered in a square, listening to speeches and shouting pro-Palestine slogans.<\/p>\n

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Police used pepper spray and tear gas to push back groups of people who \u200bwere trying to breach the line and several arrests were made, Reuters news agency reported.<\/p>\n

Protests were also held in Melbourne, where Mr Herzog is due to visit later this week.<\/p>\n

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Jackson \u200cElliott, a 30-year-old protester from Sydney, told Reuters: “The Bondi massacre was terrible but from our Australian leadership there’s been no acknowledgment of the Palestinian people and the Gazans.<\/p>\n

“Herzog has dodged all the questions about the occupation and says this visit is about Australia and Israeli relations but he is \u200ccomplicit.”<\/p>\n

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The Palestine Action Group, which organised the Sydney protest, had unsuccessfully mounted a legal challenge in a court on Monday over restrictions placed on the demonstration.<\/p>\n

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Authorities in Sydney had been authorised to use rarely invoked powers during the visit, including the ability to \u200dseparate and move crowds and restrict their entry to certain areas.<\/p>\n

The Jewish Council of Australia, a vocal critic of the Israeli government, released an open letter on Monday signed by over 1,000 Jewish Australian academics and community leaders, urging Mr Albanese to rescind \u200dMr Herzog’s invitation.<\/p>\n

Other Jewish groups have welcomed the visit of Mr Herzog, saying it will “lift the spirits of a pained community”.<\/p>\n

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At the beginning of his visit, Mr Herzog met the families of victims and survivors of the attack on a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach on 14 December.<\/p>\n

At the site, he said: “This was also an attack on all Australians.<\/p>\n

“They attacked the values that our democracies treasure, the sanctity of human life, the freedom of religion, tolerance, dignity and respect.”<\/p>\n

He also laid a wreath and two stones he had brought from Jerusalem.<\/p>\n

Along with his visits to Sydney and Melbourne, Mr Herzog is also due to arrive in the capital Canberra before he returns to Israel on Thursday.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n


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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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