Jewish man removed by police after Palestinian protesters ‘spat on’ him at Sydney rally

A 45-year-old Ukrainian-Jewish man who attended the pro-Palestine rally on Monday has shared the moment protesters spat on him and police mistakenly forced him from the area.

Ukrainian-Jewish man Anthony at the Opera House. Picture: John Feder

A Ukrainian-Jewish man is seeking answers from the NSW Police Force after officers allegedly ripped a Star of David chain from his neck and forcibly removed him from the Free Palestine rally in Sydney earlier this week.

The 45-year-old, who requested to be referred to as Anthony to protect his security, said he was “spat on” and surrounded by a group of men at the rally outside the Sydney Opera House before police officers stepped in and ordered him to move on.

Protesters were heard chanting anti-Semitic rhetoric and seen burning Israeli flags on Monday.

Handling of the protest has received widespread criticism, with NSW Premier Chris Minns apologising and taking “full responsibility” on Wednesday and Peter Dutton calling out Anthony Albanese for not addressing the “domestic threat level.”

Anthony told The Australian that while he was aware of the protest ahead of time, he had planned only to head down after work to take photos of the Israeli flag on the Opera House.

“I just wanted to see the Opera House with the Israeli lights … I wanted to take a picture, to share it with my friends in Israel to show them that Australia stands with them,” he said.

As he waded into the crowd of pro-Palestinian supporters, Anthony said he could feel the mood shift quickly just after 7pm. “As I’m walking through, I heard the chants and had to endure that,” he said. “There was a lot of anger, there was a lot of hatred towards Israel, towards Jews.”

By the time he made his way through the crowd, the chants of “From the river to the sea, Pales­tine will be free” from supporters had transitioned to “gas the Jews.”

Disturbed by the overt anti-Semitic tone, Anthony said he felt compelled to respond.

“At that point I yelled out ‘Down with Hamas, down with terrorists.”

Palestine supporters rally outside the Sydney Opera House on Monday night. Picture: Getty Images

“As soon as I said that, a group of supporters jumped me, one … spat in my face,” he said.

Anthony claimed a group of men then surrounded him and began filming on mobile phones.

Police nearby saw the interaction and swiftly moved to break up the commotion. “Immediately a group of [police] came towards me, they surrounded me and pinned me,” Anthony said.

It was during the scuffle with police Anthony realised his Star of David family heirloom was missing. “When they surrounded me, I immediately realised my chain with my Star of David had been pulled off,” he said.

Initially assuming the group of men surrounding him had stolen it, Anthony said he was shocked to later learn the chain was “yanked” from his neck when police had swarmed in on him.

He said he was denied the chance to go back and find the chain, pleading with police to collect it for him.

“They were not willing to engage at all, they just continued to force me away,” he said.

NSW police said they had been notified about the incident, confirming officers had “separated” Anthony and the man alleged to have assaulted him.

No charges have been laid and an investigation into the incident remains ongoing.