Australia’s iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge closes for pro-Palestine protest
Australia’s iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge has been closed for a major pro-Palestine march in the country’s largest city.
Protesters marched across the bridge on Sunday afternoon after the Supreme Court of New South Wales refused an application by police to prohibit the demonstration.
Police had raised concerns about public safety and the potential for a “crowd crush”, but Justice Belinda Rigg sided with the organisers, finding that they had convincingly explained the reasons why they believe the humanitarian situation in Gaza demands an urgent response.
Palestine Action Group Sydney, the organiser of the march, said it expects tens of thousands of people to attend.
Thousands of protesters march towards Sydney Harbour Bridge during the Palestine Action Group’s March for Humanity in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange joins Sydney protest
Assange is among those attending Sunday’s pro-Palestine march in Australia’s largest city.
The transparency activist, who moved back to his native Australia last year, after reaching a plea deal with the US government to avoid possible life imprisonment for publishing classified government information, was not scheduled to speak at the protest.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is seen during the Palestine Action Group’s March for Humanity in Sydney, Australia, on August 3
Australian lawmakers call for sanctions on Israel during Sydney protest
Mehreen Faruqi, the New South Wales senator for the Greens party, has told protesters gathered at central Sydney’s Lang Park that the march would “make history”.
She called for the “harshest sanctions on Israel” while accusing its military of “massacring” Palestinians in Gaza, and criticised New South Wales Premier Chris Minns for saying the protest should not go ahead.
Earlier, we reported that Australia’s iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge was closed before the major pro-Palestine march. It comes as the march was given the go-ahead with legal protection after its organisers won a Supreme Court challenge.
Chris Minns had said the government could not support a protest of 50,000 people across Sydney’s Harbour Bridge, claiming he could not “allow Sydney to descend into chaos”.
Australian Labor backbench MP Ed Husic also attended the march and called for his governing party, led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, to recognise Palestinian statehood.
Australian protesters ‘outraged’ over Israel’s war on Gaza, government’s ‘complicity’
Antony Loewenstein, author of The Palestine Laboratory, a book on the Israeli arms and surveillance industry, and who spoke at the rally, said he had “never seen a turnout like this” in the Australian city.
“The exact figures are unclear, but I would guess it was at least 100,000 people – as far as the eye could see,” he told Al Jazeera.
“What was so interesting and revealing about this kind of protest, which was similar to what I’m seeing in the US and Europe now, is that the people who are protesting the genocide in Gaza are not the people who normally protest,” Loewenstein said.
He added that participants are “outraged” not just about what Israel is doing in Gaza but also the Australian government’s “complicity”, explaining that Australia has been for many years – including since the start of the war – part of the global supply chain for the F-35 fighter jet that Israel has been using in attacking the besieged territory.
“A lot of Australians are aware of this; we are deeply complicit and people are angry that their government is doing little more than talk at this point.”
