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US Consulate in Australia Vandalized With Pro-Hamas Graffiti
Aftermath of vandalism on the US Consulate in Sydney, Australia, on June 10, 2024. Photo: Screenshot
The US consulate in Sydney, Australia was vandalized on Monday by an unidentified man carrying a sledgehammer who defaced the building in what appeared to be a pro-Hamas demonstration.
A US spokesperson for the consulate confirmed in a statement that Sydney police are investigating the incident after discovering that the windows of the consulate had been struck by a hammer, creating nine holes in the glass, and that two inverted red triangles were spray-painted onto the building.
The inverted red triangle has become a common symbol at pro-Hamas rallies. The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, has used inverted red triangles in its propaganda videos to indicate Israeli targets about to be attacked, and anti-Israel protesters on university campuses have been using the symbol in their demonstrations. According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), “the red triangle is now used to represent Hamas itself and glorify its use of violence.”
Hamas propaganda showing the targeting of an Israeli tank in Rafah with a red triangle. Photo: Screenshot from X/Twitter
In response to Monday’s attack, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the vandalism, urging anti-Israel protesters to “turn the heat down.”
“I would just say that people should have respectful political debate and discourse,” Albanese said in a televised media conference from Canberra. “Measures such as painting the US consulate do nothing to advance the cause of those who have committed what is of course a crime to damage property.”
Monday was not the first time the US Consulate in Sydney has been vandalized. In April, vandals spray-painted “freee [sic] Palestine” on the side of the consulate.
The party responsible for the latest attack, captured on camera wearing a black hoodie, remains at large. Consular operations have remained unaffected by the incident, according to the US spokesperson.
The vandalism came after a weekend of both pro- and anti-Israel protests across Australia after the rescue of four Israeli hostages from Gaza. About 1,000 pro-Hamas demonstrators gathered in Sydney’s Hyde Park. Meanwhile, in Melbourne, Adam Brandt — the leader of the left-wing Greens Party — declared that Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute a”“war crime.” Victorian police deployed tear gas to clear out pro-Hamas protesters.
Melbourne is no stranger to such activism. Last year, anti-Israel activists gathered for an angry demonstration outside a hotel in the city, where a delegation of the families of Israelis murdered and abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7 were staying, forcing them to evacuate and discuss different security arrangements with police.
However, amid a spike in antisemitic outrages in Australia following the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre in southern Israel, numerous prominent Australians have openly declared support for the Jewish community.
Jacob Frankel is working as an intern for The Algemeiner before heading to law school.
The post US Consulate in Australia Vandalized With Pro-Hamas Graffiti first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Lebanon Must Disarm Hezbollah to Have a Shot at Better Days, Says US Envoy
Thomas Barrack at the Brooklyn Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, U.S., November 4, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
i24 News – Lebanon’s daunting social, economic and political issues would not get resolved unless the state persists in the efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy behind so much of the unrest and destruction, special US envoy Tom Barrack told The National.
“You have Israel on one side, you have Iran on the other, and now you have Syria manifesting itself so quickly that if Lebanon doesn’t move, it’s going to be Bilad Al Sham again,” he said, using the historical Arabic name for the region sometimes known as “larger Syria.”
The official stressed the need to follow through on promises to disarm the Iranian proxy, which suffered severe blows from Israel in the past year, including the elimination of its entire leadership, and is considered a weakened though still dangerous jihadist outfit.
“There are issues that we have to arm wrestle with each other over to come to a final conclusion. Remember, we have an agreement, it was a great agreement. The problem is, nobody followed it,” he told The National.
Barrack spoke on the heels of a trip to Beirut, where he proposed a diplomatic plan for the region involving the full disarmament of Hezbollah by the Lebanese state.
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Report: Putin Urges Iran to Accept ‘Zero Enrichment’ Nuclear Deal With US
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of a cultural forum dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of the Turkmen poet and philosopher Magtymguly Fragi, in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 11, 2024. Photo: Sputnik/Alexander Scherbak/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Iranian leadership that he supports the idea of a nuclear deal in which Iran is unable to enrich uranium, the Axios website reported on Saturday. The Russian strongman also relayed the message to his American counterpart, President Donald Trump, the report said.
Iranian news agency Tasnim issued a denial, citing an “informed source” as saying Putin had not sent any message to Iran in this regard.
Also on Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that “Any negotiated solution must respect Iran’s right to enrichment. No agreement without recognizing our right to enrichment. If negotiations occur, the only topic will be the nuclear program. No other issues, especially defense or military matters, will be on the agenda.”
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Syria’s Al-Sharaa Attending At Least One Meeting With Israeli Officials in Azerbaijan
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/Pool
i24 News – Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is attending at least one meeting with Israeli officials in Azerbaijan today, despite sources in Damascus claiming he wasn’t attending, a Syrian source close to President Al-Sharaa tells i24NEWS.
The Syrian source stated that this is a series of two or three meetings between the sides, with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani also in attendance, along with Ahmed Al-Dalati, the Syrian government’s liaison for security meetings with Israel.
The high-level Israeli delegation includes a special envoy of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, as well as security and military figures.
The purpose of the meetings is to discuss further details of the security agreement to be signed between Israel and Syria, the Iranian threat in Syria and Lebanon, Hezbollah’s weapons, the weapons of Palestinian militias, the Palestinians camps in Lebanon, and the future of Palestinian refugees from Gaza in the region.
The possibility of opening an Israeli coordination office in Damascus, without diplomatic status, might also be discussed.
The source stated that the decision to hold the meetings in Azerbaijan, made by Israel and the US, is intended to send a message to Iran.
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