Adelaide protestors join nationwide rallies against Israeli president’s visit
Hundreds are expected to protest in Adelaide against a planned national visit by Israel’s president. But a Jewish community leader says that “there is nothing to protest about”.
Pro-Palestinian activists are calling for a federal police investigation into Israeli president Isaac Herzog for “incitement to genocide”, with hundreds expected to take part in an Adelaide protest against his planned visit to Australia.
Protestors will meet at the steps of Parliament House on Monday evening and are calling for Australia to cut ties with Israel. Rallies are also planned for other capital cities around Australia.
Herzog is scheduled to visit Australia from Sunday until Thursday, February 12, to “express solidarity and offer strength to the community in the aftermath of the (Bondi) attack”.
He will be accompanied by Yaakov Hagoel, who is chair of the World Zionist Organisation, and former Israeli major general Doron Almog, who is chair of the Jewish Agency.
During the visit, he will meet with Australia’s Governor-General Sam Mostyn and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, as well as the families of Bondi victims and those injured during the attack.
It comes as the Australian Friends of Palestine Association (AFOPA) made a formal request to the Australian Federal Police (AFP) to investigate Herzog for “genocide”, “crimes against humanity” and “war crimes”.
“The AFP is reviewing the material provided and engaging with other Commonwealth partners on the issues raised. We will provide an update at an appropriate time,” Stephen Nutt, who is AFP’s assistant commissioner for counter terrorism and special investigations, said in a letter to AFOPA chair Christa Christaki.
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Pro-Palestinian activist Ahmed Azhar, who is running as an independent in Croydon at the March state election, said he helped organise the protest with AFOPA “because in Gaza at the moment children are freezing to death in their mother’s arms”.
“The supplies that they need to survive are on the other side of a militarised fence … his government is facilitating genocide,” he said.
“We don’t think that war criminals should be allowed to enter into the highest halls of power.”
Herzog drew criticism for comments he made after the October 7 Hamas attack, where he said the “entire nation out there was responsible”. He has denied that he has incited genocide and later clarified that “there are many, many innocent Palestinians who don’t agree” with Hamas.
Israel has strongly rejected accusations of genocide, labelling them “false and outrageous”.
A United Nations Commission of Inquiry concluded last September that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza and that top Israeli officials had incited these acts.
Australian Friends of Palestine Association deputy chair Mike Khizam said he was joining the protest because “the reality is that millions of Australians have been horrified and devastated by the slaughter that we’ve seen in Gaza since October 7”.
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“What we want is for the government to recognise that Israel needs to face the International Court of Justice, that Israel needs to be held to international norms, that what is being done to Palestinians in Gaza now needs to be stopped by the international community,” he said.
Khizam and Azhar expected hundreds of people to take part in the protest. Khizam said AFOPA was not aware of any plans for Herzog to visit Adelaide.
Norman Schueler, who is the government and public liaison officer at the Jewish Community Council of South Australia, claimed that “there’s nothing to protest about”.
“It’s a president who is coming primarily to Sydney to meet bereaved Jewish people, and as a measure of solidarity and condolence, and we look after our people wherever they are in the world. It’s a human thing to do,” he said.
When asked about people who are concerned about the death toll in Gaza, Schueler blamed “the people from Gaza” for starting the war after the October 7 attacks on Israel.
“The people who started the war were the people from Gaza on October 7,” he said.
“They didn’t need to start that war, and when there is a war, there is collateral damage.”
Australia’s Foreign Minister, Senator Penny Wong, said that “President Herzog is being invited to Australia to honour the victims of Bondi and to be with and provide support to Australia’s Jewish community”.
“I have said previously that Israel will be judged by the International Court of Justice on its compliance with the Genocide Convention, and I’ve also said previously that it must accept its responsibility for the humanitarian situation in Gaza,” she said.
A spokesperson for South Australia Police said they “are committed to ensuring the rights of all South Australians to engage in lawful protests”.
“Prior to any activity, police undertake risk assessments based on intelligence to ensure that sufficient police resources are deployed, and community safety is maintained,” he said.
“Anyone participating in a protest must do so peacefully, and anyone who engages in disruptive or unlawful behaviour will face enforcement action if necessary.”
Executive Council of Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin and the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs were contacted for comment.
The war in Gaza began after Hamas-led militants killed 1200 people and took about 250 hostages in an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed about 70,000 Palestinians, according to Gazan health officials, while also leaving much of Gaza in ruins.
