‘Anarchy’: Police drop charges against pro-Palestine group who clashed with Jews in shocking video
Police in Victoria have made a surprising decision after a disturbing incident between protesters was caught on viral video.
Police in Victoria have quietly dropped assault charges against three prominent pro-Palestine activists filmed in a violent clash with a group of Jews in front of Melbourne’s Town Hall last year, sparking outrage from the wife of one of the alleged victims who says the Victorian capital is descending into lawlessness.
“They’re just not enforcing laws,” said Sharon Kuper, 57.
“So few charges are laid [against protesters]. It’s anarchy.”
Sydney barrister Peter Lavac, who has emerged as an outspoken legal advocate for the Jewish community, said “the rule of law has been hijacked by rule of the mob” in Melbourne.
“A mob which has hijacked public places to spew hatred and vitriol not only against Jews but also Australians, and Victoria Police are not only supporting anti-Semitism and condoning it, they are complicit in anti-Semitism by their behaviour,” he said.
“It shouldn’t really surprise anyone as Victoria Police are the most left-wing, woke police force in the country. This is the same police force that fired rubber bullets at its own citizens protesting draconian Covid lockdowns imposed by Chairman Dan Andrews.”
Mrs Kuper, her husband Mark Kuper, 60, and Yaacov Travitz, 37, were attempting to enter the Melbourne City Council building on February 20, 2024, in front of hundreds of pro-Palestine supporters gathered outside as councillors voted on a motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Viral videos of the incident showed a group of protesters block the trio’s path.
Tensions quickly escalated into a violent scuffle, with Mr Kuper pushed to the ground before being hauled away by police, who accused him of “disturbing the peace”.
“Yakov was carrying a can of Coke, my husband was pointing, trying to get to the door,” Mrs Kuper said. “They block his path and start pushing and shoving. My husband had his hands up in the air and then he hits the ground.”
Late last year Victoria Police charged Abdel Qaisi, Ihab Mohammed Alazhari and Mohammed Sharab with assault over the incident.
Mr Alazhari founded the “Sit-Intifada” campaign in November 2023, aiming to sit on the steps of Victorian Parliament every day from 9am to 9pm.
Mr Sharab had previously pleaded guilty to assaulting Rebel News journalist Avi Yemini and videographer Rukshan Fernando in separate incidents at the same February 20 rally.
The three men appeared in Melbourne Magistrates Court for the first time in December in relation to the February 20 Town Hall incident.
Mrs Kuper said her husband and Mr Travitz — an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) veteran and co-founder of The Lions of Zion (TLOZ), a controversial charity that organises counter-protests to “reclaim” the streets from pro-Palestine rallies — were only informed by Victoria Police late last month that the charges had been dropped after the men indicated they would be arguing self-defence.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman confirmed to news.com.au that the charges were withdrawn as there was no “reasonable prospect of conviction”.
“Three men were charged with unlawful assault following an investigation into an alleged incident outside Melbourne Town Hall on 20 February, 2024,” she said.
“All three men appeared before court where Victoria Police prosecutors ultimately decided to withdraw the charges. All Victoria Police prosecutions are assessed in accordance with the Director of Public Prosecution’s Policy. For this matter, the charges were withdrawn as there was not a reasonable prospect of conviction.”
Mrs Kuper expressed disbelief at the decision.
“How is that self defence?” she said. “How can that possibly be considered such a strong case of self-defence that they drop the case?”
She said many Jews in Melbourne now felt so unsafe that they were considering leaving. “We’re not a completely crazy, paranoid, unhinged community, but we’re all having the discussions — where are we going to go?” she said.
“We’re the most law-abiding, peaceful community, we make such a huge contribution. It’s just staggering that we’re all so insecure about our safety … that you can chase out the most peaceful community. They’re completely emboldened to the point they scream ‘I’ll kill you’.”
In a separate incident in March this year, Mr Alazhari was filmed screaming “I’ll kill you” at a group of counter-protesters on the other side of a police line outside the State Library of Victoria.
“You hear that?” protester An Nguyen, who took the video, asked the officer standing with his back to the group. “Are you deaf? He just threatened to kill.”
After the clip was publicised by Rebel News, Victoria Police confirmed it was investigating the matter, adding that the protest was “a highly dynamic event with tempers fuelled by opposing parties”.
Mr Lavac said the apparent lack of police action shown in the video was an “absolute f**king disgrace”. “Police stood around like stuffed dummies while an anti-Semitic thug screamed death threats to a male person draped in an Aussie flag,” he said.
“That person begged the police to act and the police ignored him. The refusal of police to arrest this anti-Semitic thug must be extremely concerning and disturbing not only to the Jewish community but to the entire Australian community.”
Mr Lavac said letters had been written to Premier Jacinta Allan “detailing reports of verbal and physical attacks on Jews by pro-Palestine supporters, resulting in zero action by police”. “The complaints then get shuffled around from person to person, with zero action taken,” he said.
Last May, a lawyer for the Never Again is Now (NAIN) protest group sent a letter to Ms Allan highlighting 72 such alleged incidents at its May 19 rally in the CBD.
A response from Police Minister Anthony Carbines’ office in September stressed that “in Victoria, people have the right to engage in peaceful protests and demonstrations if they do so lawfully and do not engage in illegal behaviours such as trespassing, obstructing roads and footpaths, endangering the safety of persons, causing injury to persons or damage to property, causing a breach of the peace or posing a risk to public safety”.
“The role of police at community protests is to maintain public order, enforce the law and ensure safety of the parties to the dispute and the broader community,” the letter said.
“Police will only intervene when there is a real risk to public order or community safety … It is important to mention that Victoria Police has been engaging closely with protest organisers to set clear expectations of behaviour.”
Mr and Mrs Kuper have unsuccessfully sought documents from Victoria Police under freedom-of-information laws including “any directions, instructions, protocols, or advice provided to Victoria Police officers … regarding the handling of protests or protests in public places, specifically concerning” the Israel-Gaza war.
Victoria Police denied the request as being overly broad, as there had been “hundreds of rallies and protests concerning this matter over the time frame you stipulate”.
Mr Kuper also lodged a complaint about his arrest with Victoria’s Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) last April, but IBAC declined to pursue the matter after concluding that it “did not reasonably demonstrate that Victoria Police members engaged in police personnel misconduct”.
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