Andrew Bolt: Why Melbourne anti-war protest was always going to be violent

It is no surprise the disgusting “peace” protest at the Land Forces defence expo in Melbourne turned violent — it’s a riot against the West’s right to defend itself against totalitarian regimes.

Don’t pretend you’re surprised the disgusting “peace” protest in Melbourne has been violent, with masked and keffiyah-wearing protesters attacking police.

Don’t buy the protesters’ claims – backed by foolish Greens leader Adam Bandt – that they’re just against weapons and war.

False. People who want peace wouldn’t be violent themselves, and people against war wouldn’t be on the side of warmongers.

No, what you’ve seen outside the Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition has been a riot against the West’s right to defend itself against totalitarian regimes.

This is a sinister attempt to shut down by force an exhibition of the latest weapons to defend ourselves in a world that’s suddenly very threatening, with Russia starting a war against Ukraine, Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists starting a war against Israel, and China threatening a war against Taiwan.

What you’ve seen outside the Land Forces expo has been a riot against the West’s right to defend itself against totalitarian regimes. Picture: Getty Images

Look at the flags being flown by the protesters. Picture: Getty Images

It’s no surprise the protest turned violent. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Note: these are all tyrannies at war with democracies, and these protesters in Melbourne are their useful idiots – or even willing aides.

Look at the flags being flown by the protesters: Palestinian, Marxist and even Russian flags.

Look at the demands on the posters – some printed in Arabic – and on the website of the DisruptLandForces website that’s backed by dozens of Palestinian, Marxist and radical green groups, including the anti-capitalist Extinction Rebellion.

There are demands that Australia “demilitarise” and attacks on the US as the greatest “terrorist” nation. There are calls for an end to Australia – “the colony will fall” – and for the destruction of Israel.

Not once did I hear calls for Hamas to be disarmed. Or Iran. Or Russia. Or China, now building the world’s biggest military as it prepares for war.

Not once did I hear calls for Hamas to be disarmed. Picture: Getty Images

The protesters in Melbourne are willing aides. Picture: AFP

The protest is a sinister attempt to shut down by force an exhibition of the latest weapons to defend ourselves. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Or look at the five people listed to speak at this protest. They include Natalie Farah, who calls herself a “proud refugee” and Palestinian-Syrian; Adolf Mora, a West Papuan asylum seeker; Aran Mylvaganam, the socialist founder of a hard-Left Tamil Refugee Group and Nasser Mashni, an extremist whose father, a Palestinian Muslim militant praised by the head of Hamas, came here claiming to be a Christian refugee.

We opened our doors to them?

How truly anti-war and anti-weapons is Mashni, for instance? Two months ago he praised Leila Khaled, a former Palestinian terrorist who hijacked two planes, as “our hero”, and last year said destroying Israel was just the start: “The world is a far better place once we destroy Western imperialist control of the world.”

So this protest in Melbourne was violent?

How utterly unsurprising.