The Palestine Action Group has asked a Sydney court to find that Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza, as activists push to hold a protected protest at the city's Opera House. The group, along with Jews Against Occupation, is challenging a decision by New South Wales police to oppose a proposed march from Hyde Park to the Opera House on 12 October.
The matter was briefly heard in the state's supreme court on Tuesday before being moved to the court of appeal, after police lawyers applied for the transfer due to legal complexities and the proximity of the protest. Outside court, lawyer Nicholas Hanna said they would ask the appeal court to make a positive finding of genocide when considering Sunday's planned protest.
Hanna noted that an affidavit from Chris Sidoti, a member of the UN independent international commission of inquiry, had been submitted as evidence that Israel's conduct amounted to genocide. Sidoti's report last month stated that the Israeli government and military were committing genocide in Gaza, a finding Israel has rejected. Hanna argued that the court needed to weigh 'the seriousness and urgency of the cause' in determining whether police were justified in prohibiting the protest.
During a directions hearing on Friday, Justice Desmond Fagan referred to Israel's conduct as genocide, saying the sentiment in the community had developed over 'two years of real-time broadcasting of genocide'. Police have cited safety concerns, including the potential for a crowd crush, as grounds for rejecting the protest application. They said they were open to negotiating an alternative route.
The court also heard that the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the Jewish Board of Deputies were planning to challenge the protest, citing fears among Jewish community members after antisemitic chants were heard at a protest near the Opera House on 9 October 2023. Police later confirmed those chanting were not part of the Palestine Action Group.
