Tens of thousands join pro-Palestinian march over Sydney Harbour Bridge
SYDNEY: Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters including WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday, closing the world famous landmark. Assange, who returned to Australia last year after his release from a high-security British prison, was pictured surrounded by family and marching alongside former Australian foreign minister and New South Wales premier Bob Carr. France, Britain and Canada have in recent weeks voiced, in some cases qualified, intentions to diplomatically recognize a Palestinian state as international concern and criticism have grown over malnutrition in Gaza.
Australia has called for an end to the war in Gaza but has so far stopped short of a decision to recognize a Palestinian state. But in a joint statement with more than a dozen other nations on Tuesday it expressed the 'willingness or the positive consideration... to recognize the state of Palestine as an essential step towards the two-State solution'. The pro-Palestinian crowd braved heavy winds and rain to march across the bridge, chanting 'ceasefire now' and 'free Palestine'.
New South Wales police said it had deployed hundreds of extra staff across Sydney for the march.
Mehreen Faruqi, the New South Wales senator for the left-wing Greens party, told the crowd gathered at central Sydney's Lang Park that the march would 'make history'. She called for the 'harshest sanctions on Zionist entity', accusing its forces of 'massacring' Gazans, and criticized New South Wales premier Chris Minns for saying the protest should not go ahead. 'Enough is enough,' said Doug, a man in his 60s with a shock of white hair. 'When people from all over the world gather together and speak up, then evil can be overcome.'
New South Wales police said up to 90,000 people had attended, far more than expected. The protest organizer, Palestine Action Group Sydney, said in a Facebook post as many as 300,000 people may have marched. New South Wales police and the state's premier last week tried to block the march from taking place on the bridge, a city landmark and transport thoroughfare, saying the route could cause safety hazards and transport disruption.
The state's Supreme Court ruled on Saturday that it could go ahead. Acting Deputy Police Commissioner Peter McKenna said more than a thousand police were deployed and the size of the crowd had led to fears of a crush. 'No one was hurt,' he told a press conference. 'But gee whiz, I wouldn't like try and do this every Sunday at that short notice.'
Police were also present in Melbourne, where a similar protest march took place.
Dozens of marchers held up banners listing the names of thousands of Palestinian children killed since the Gaza war broke out in October 2023. Labor backbench MP Ed Husic attended the march and called for his ruling party, led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, to recognize a Palestinian state. Assange did not address the crowd or talk to the media.
Zionist entity is under mounting international pressure to end the bloodshed that has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry.
The Harbour Bridge is over a kilometer long and was opened in 1932. Since then its twin parabolic arcs have become world famous, a symbol of both Sydney and of Australia. – Agencies
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