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Pro-Hezbollah Protests Are a Threat to Australian Society
Illustrative: Supporters of Hamas gather for a rally in Melbourne, Australia. Photo: Reuters/Joel Carrett
Last weekend, a large group of protestors in Melbourne and Sydney, waved Hezbollah flags and displayed photographs of assassinated Hezbollah terror chief, Hassan Nasrallah.
Hezbollah is a proscribed terrorist organization in Australia, so this kind of public support is illegal, yet this did not stop the protestors from turning out and chanting anti-Israel slogans through the streets of Australia’s biggest cities.
Unfortunately, Australia has regularly experienced this kind of open hatred.
Just one day after the October 7 Hamas massacre, a frenzied group of demonstrators gathered on the steps of the iconic Sydney Opera House, burning Israeli flags and chanting “f…k the Jews” and “Where’s the Jews?”
That violent display of hate should have been shut down immediately, but it wasn’t — marking the beginning of what would be a difficult year for Australia’s Jewish community, with weekly protests often descending into intimidation, violence, and antisemitism.
Law enforcement has kept order, but mostly seemed determined to avoid levying any actual charges against the perpetrators.
This hatred on the streets of Australia has not been helped by radical imams who have praised Hamas’ terror attacks and spouted hateful, antisemitic rhetoric.
After Nasrallah’s death, one mosque in Sydney issued a notice publicizing a vigil to be held for him, called him a “righteous martyr.” This was followed by a hateful sermon calling for Israel’s defeat, which cited a notorious tradition accusing the Jews of rejecting Allah and having distorted the Torah.
Particularly disturbing in these demonstrations is the open support from members of The Greens political party, including its deputy leader, Mehreen Faruqi, who frequently accuses Israel of committing genocide. Faruqi, a regular at anti-Israel demonstrations since October 7, attended the pro-Hezbollah rally in Sydney and spoke to the crowd.
Another Greens Senator attended a pro-Hezbollah rally in Adelaide, the capital city in South Australia.
In response to the actions of the Greens, Foreign Minister Penny Wong condemned “any indication of support for a terrorist organisation such as Hizballah,” adding that “All of us — including every political leader –must stand together to reject terrorism and extremism.”
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke also warned of potential visa cancellations for any non-citizens waving the Hezbollah flag.
Meanwhile, Opposition Home Affairs Senator James Paterson accused the government of displaying “equivocation and ambivalence in the face of an anti-Semitism crisis,” and warned that unless there were consequences, “the extremism we have seen on our streets today will continue to flourish.”
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton reiterated this, saying it was “completely unacceptable” that there haven’t been arrests yet or the cancelling of visas of people who “glorify” terrorist groups.
The Australian Federal Police have also confirmed that they have been asked to investigate at least six people from the pro-Hezbollah rallies in Melbourne and Sydney.
Despite its vast distance from Israel, Australia is experiencing, like many other countries, an explosive increase in antisemitism after the October 7 attacks. Jewish schools and other communal buildings have been forced to increase security measures that were already tight before October 7.
Indeed, there are many in the Jewish community — including Holocaust survivors — who are currently living in fear.
An online WhatsApp group of 600 Jewish creatives was “doxxed” by pro-Palestinian activists, causing many of them to be subjected to death threats and ongoing harassment, and others losing employment opportunities.
It is simply outrageous that in a multicultural tolerant country like Australia, which also has the largest per-capita number of Holocaust survivors outside of Israel, the glorification of terrorist leaders can be so brazenly displayed and tolerated.
It is imperative that governments, state and federal, and law enforcement crack down on this behavior, otherwise there is a risk to the cohesive fabric of Australian society.
Justin Amler is a policy analyst at the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC).
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Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem, Sept. 2, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israel has decided to send a delegation to Qatar for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official said, reviving hopes of a breakthrough in negotiations to end the almost 21-month war.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Friday it had responded to a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal in a “positive spirit,” a few days after US President Donald Trump said Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day truce.
The Israeli negotiation delegation will fly to Qatar on Sunday, the Israeli official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
But in a sign of the potential challenges still facing the two sides, a Palestinian official from a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing in southern Israel to Egypt and clarity over a timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements Hamas and Israel remain far apart.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the terrorist group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.
Israeli media said on Friday that Israel had received and was reviewing Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.
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Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran
Tucker Carlson speaks on July 18, 2024 during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo: Jasper Colt-USA TODAY via Reuters Connect
US conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson said in an online post on Saturday that he had conducted an interview with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, which would air in the next day or two.
Carlson said the interview was conducted remotely through a translator, and would be published as soon as it was edited, which “should be in a day or two.”
Carlson said he had stuck to simple questions in the interview, such as, “What is your goal? Do you seek war with the United States? Do you seek war with Israel?”
“There are all kinds of questions that I didn’t ask the president of Iran, particularly questions to which I knew I could get an not get an honest answer, such as, ‘was your nuclear program totally disabled by the bombing campaign by the US government a week and a half ago?’” he said.
Carlson also said he had made a third request in the past several months to interview Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will be visiting Washington next week for talks with US President Donald Trump.
Trump said on Friday he would discuss Iran with Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump said he believed Tehran’s nuclear program had been set back permanently by recent US strikes that followed Israel’s attacks on the country last month, although Iran could restart it at a different location.
Trump also said Iran had not agreed to inspections of its nuclear program or to give up enriching uranium. He said he would not allow Tehran to resume its nuclear program, adding that Iran did want to meet with him.
Pezeshkian said last month Iran does not intend to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.
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Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – As Israeli leaders weigh the contours of a possible partial ceasefire deal with Hamas, the families of the 50 hostages still held in Gaza issued an impassioned public statement this weekend, condemning any agreement that would return only some of the abductees.
In a powerful message released Saturday, the Families Forum for the Return of Hostages denounced what they call the “beating system” and “cruel selection process,” which, they say, has left families trapped in unbearable uncertainty for 638 days—not knowing whether to hope for reunion or prepare for mourning.
The group warned that a phased or selective deal—rumored to be under discussion—would deepen their suffering and perpetuate injustice. Among the 50 hostages, 22 are believed to be alive, and 28 are presumed dead.
“Every family deserves answers and closure,” the Forum said. “Whether it is a return to embrace or a grave to mourn over—each is sacred.”
They accused the Israeli government of allowing political considerations to prevent a full agreement that could have brought all hostages—living and fallen—home long ago. “It is forbidden to conform to the dictates of Schindler-style lists,” the statement read, invoking a painful historical parallel.
“All of the abductees could have returned for rehabilitation or burial months ago, had the government chosen to act with courage.”
The call for a comprehensive deal comes just as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares for high-stakes talks in Washington and as indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in Doha within the next 24 hours, according to regional media reports.
Hamas, for its part, issued a statement Friday confirming its readiness to begin immediate negotiations on the implementation of a ceasefire and hostage release framework.
The Forum emphasized that every day in captivity poses a mortal risk to the living hostages, and for the deceased, a danger of being lost forever. “The horror of selection does not spare any of us,” the statement said. “Enough with the separation and categories that deepen the pain of the families.”
In a planned public address near Begin Gate in Tel Aviv, families are gathering Saturday evening to demand that the Israeli government accept a full-release deal—what they describe as the only “moral and Zionist” path forward.
“We will return. We will avenge,” the Forum concluded. “This is the time to complete the mission.”
As of now, the Israeli government has not formally responded to Hamas’s latest statement.
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