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Australia is bracing for more demonstrations as political leaders and civil society groups appeal for calm after police were accused of using excessive force against a peaceful demonstration against Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Sydney.
Palestinian Action Group Sydney called on its supporters to gather on Tuesday afternoon to “protest police brutality” and demand the resignation of government and police officials over what it called “violent repression” of “peaceful” demonstrators.
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Violence broke out in central Sydney on Monday night. This comes after police prevented thousands of peaceful protesters from marching in areas of the city that authorities had declared off-limits. Some estimates put the number of demonstrators at 50,000.
Protest organizers said police “pepper sprayed” and “assaulted” rally participants. Police announced that 27 people were arrested, including 10 on suspicion of assault.
Abigail Boyd, a member of the opposition Green Party in Australia’s state parliament, said she had been beaten by a police officer at a rally and had also witnessed police violence against others.
“The police kind of ran towards a group of people and locked them down in an area,” Boyd told reporters.
“It was evening prayer time, so there was a group of people praying. There were probably about 12 of them. They were praying peacefully, but it was obvious that the police were trying to move them in the middle of prayer,” Boyd said of how he was struck by a police officer shortly after.
“I was lifted off the ground and then, as you can see in the video, as I was trying to regain my balance, another officer punched me in the head, and then another officer punched me in the shoulder,” she said.
“I don’t understand how that is an appropriate response to something. I didn’t do anything wrong. There was no one around me. Then they went in and grabbed these people who were praying. There’s nothing more peaceful than prayer. Just pick them up and throw them on the ground again,” she added.
“These people were treated incredibly badly.”
“Excessive police force”
In a statement to Al Jazeera, Australian racial justice group Democracy in Color said it was “horrified” by the use of “excessive police force” against demonstrators who had gathered to protest Herzog’s visit.
“What we saw last night was not ‘community security’; it was a violent display of state power aimed at silencing people protesting for human rights,” said Noura Mansour, national director of Democracy in Color.
“When police pepper spray peaceful protesters or assault people during prayers, it is a gross violation of dignity and a direct attack on people’s democratic rights,” Mansour said.
Protest organizers say the Israeli president, who a UN commission of inquiry has found responsible for inciting Israeli forces to commit genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, should not be spared protests over his visit to Australia.
Amnesty International’s Australian branch said: “Having President Herzog as our guest of honor undermines Australia’s commitment to accountability and justice. We cannot remain silent.”
“For more than two years, President Herzog has caused untold suffering to Palestinians in Gaza with brazen impunity,” Amnesty added.
Israel, with US support, launched a genocidal war in Gaza on October 8, 2023, killing at least 72,032 people, including around 600 killed after the latest ceasefire in October 2025.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he was “devastated” by the incident and appealed for calm.
“Australians want two things. They don’t want conflict brought here. They want the killings to stop, whether it’s Israelis or Palestinians, but they don’t want conflict brought here,” Mr Albanese told radio station Triple M on Tuesday.
Mr Herzog is visiting Australia at the invitation of Albanians following the shooting of 15 people attending a Jewish festival at Sydney’s Bondi Beach in December.
In a statement, the Palestinian Action Group Sydney also called on police to drop all charges against detained protesters and for the resignation of New South Wales Premier Chris Minns and Police Chief Mal Lanyon.
Runyon said the officers’ actions were justified and called the protesters an “angry, violent mob.”
Premier Minns told a news conference that police officers were in an “incredibly difficult situation” and was urging action.
