Politics Now: Thousands gather at pro-Palestine, pro-Israel rallies in Sydney and Melbourne

Palestine and Israel supporters congregated in their thousands in Sydney and Melbourne, amid a strong police presence in both cities. 

Participants at a pro-Palestine rally in Melbourne's CBD. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Crosling

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6:14 pm October 29, 2023

Australia's abstention on UN vote on Gaza 'regrettable'

Tricia Rivera

Palestine's General Delegation to Australia says it is "regrettable and deeply disappointing" that Australia abstained from voting on a United Nations resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza.

The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted in favour of a non-binding resolution calling for an "immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce" between Israeli forces and Hamas militants.

The resolution passed with 120 countries voting yes, 14 against and 45 abstaining.

"This vote signals the commitment of a moral majority of the international community to uphold its obligations and to reject double-standards and politicisation of international law," the General Delegation of Palestine to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific said in a statement on Sunday.

"It is regrettable and deeply disappointing that Australia decided not to vote with the moral majority, and instead chose to abstain."

Australia's permanent representative to the UN James Larsen said the move to abstain was due to the resolution being "incomplete".

"The resolution did not recognise terror group Hamas as the perpetrator of the 7 October attack, and Australia again explicitly calls for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages," Mr Larsen wrote in a statement explaining the vote.

The delegation said the justification had "no merit without also calling for Israel to be condemned in the resolution".

"The General Delegation of Palestine calls on Australia to support calls for an immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities, and demands for immediate, continuous, sufficient and unhindered provision of essential goods and services to civilians throughout the Gaza Strip," the statement continued.

4:09 pm October 29, 2023

Sydney rally repeats calls to free Palestine, accuses Albanese of supporting genocide

Alexi Demetriadi

A mammoth pro-Palestine rally in the Sydney CBD has started marching as the crowd – estimated at tens of thousands – repeated calls for action while accusing Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of supporting genocide.

Organised by the Palestinian Action Group, Sunday’s rally is the largest yet – the group have organised a rally weekly since Hamas’ attacks on October 7 – with tens of thousands congregating in Sydney's Hyde Park.

The march, from Hyde Park to Belmore Park, towards Sydney’s Chinatown, heard the usual chants of “free, free Palestine”, but also those accusing both the prime minister, and Israel and the US, of supporting genocide.

Approx 10,000 people at today’s pro-Palestine rally in Sydney’s CBD, marching from Hyde Park down towards Haymarket. First cohort of marchers chant to free Palestine and call on PM Albanese to change his stance. pic.twitter.com/Og1fzvv1lG

— Alexi Demetriadi (@ADemetriadi) October 29, 2023

“Albanese you can’t hide, you’re supporting genocide,” the crowd chanted.

Marchers at the front of the procession could also be heard chanting: “Israel, USA – how many kids did you kill today”.

The rally follows a pro-Israel march in Sydney on Sunday morning – albeit much smaller in size – that called on Hamas to release Israeli hostages.

Zara Hussein, in attendance at the pro-Palestine rally with her family, told The Australian she hoped the march would send a notice to federal and state governments to change their stance on the conflict.

“We’re here for the freedom of Palestinian children,” she said. “It’s now about saving Palestine, not just freeing it.

“It’s unfair on the children, we are here to fight for those children, and the elderly, who are not fighting. We’ve had enough and we won’t be silent anymore.”

3:13 pm October 29, 2023 Highlight

Australians urged to leave Lebanon

Tricia Rivera

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has urged Australians in Lebanon to "leave now".

"Australians in Lebanon should leave now, while commercial flights remain available," she wrote on social media platform X.

"If armed conflict increases, it could affect wider areas of Lebanon and close Beirut airport."

Senator Wong included a link to the Smartraveller website with updated information for Australians in Lebanon.

"We continue to advise do not travel to Lebanon due to the volatile security situation and the risk of the security situation deteriorating further," the advice update said.

"Terrorist attacks could occur anytime and anywhere, including in Beirut"

3:01 pm October 29, 2023

Thousands gather at pro-Palestine, pro-Israel rallies

Tricia Rivera

Thousands of pro-Palestine protesters are gathering in Sydney and Melbourne on Sunday afternoon to call for an end to the invasion and the blockade of supplies in Gaza.

Supporters gathered at Sydney's Hyde Park and Melbourne's State Library of Victoria and were met with a strong police presence.

This is the third weekend in a row the Palestine Action Group and Free Palestine Melbourne have organised protests.

"The Australian government continues to give full support to Israel's war crimes, even sending troops to the Middle East to act as Israel's protector," the Palestine Action Group Facebook group wrote.

"Last week, we held a massive and peaceful demonstration of 30,000 people, including people from Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities.

"This Sunday, we need to mobilise in even bigger numbers."

Organisers of the rallies warned group members that they would not tolerate anti semitic chants, the use of flares and the burning of flags.

In Sydney, members of the Jewish community organised a rally in solidarity with the people of Israel, bringing to attention the plight of the estimated 200 people, including 30 teenagers and young children and 20 people over the age of 60, who are being held hostage by militant group Hamas in Gaza.

Sydney's Martin Place where empty prams and the images of children held hostage by Hamas will be displayed to show solidarity with Israel as communities across Australia remain divided over the conflict. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Monique Harmer

Organisers of the pro-Israeli “Bring them home” rally held in Martin Place on Sunday morning, arranged empty prams alongside empty shoes to represent the children and adults taken hostage.

Protesters subsequently marched to Circular Quay, where the demonstration concluded with a song and prayer on the Museum of Contemporary Art’s eastern forecourt.

Addressing the crowd, protest organiser Avi Efrat said the Australian Jewish community would not be cowed by the escalating conflict.

“The reason we are doing [this] in the city is to give back confidence to the Jewish community in Australia and in Sydney,” he told the crowd.

“Some of our community is scared to even go out. I have an answer to these people: not under this generation. This generation is a different generation. We will not be scared, we will come here and say what we have to say.”

A similar pro-Israeli demonstration also occurred in Melbourne on Sunday, with protesters set to gather in Caulfield Park to call for the release of Israeli hostages.

– Additional reporting Jack Quail NCA NewsWire

12:40 pm October 29, 2023

Senior Republicans pledge support for Israel

Staff writers

Republican presidential hopefuls have pledged unwavering support for Israel in its war on Hamas as they spoke at an annual gathering of influential Jewish donors, AFP reports.

Former president Donald Trump told the Republican Jewish Coalition event he would “defend our friend and ally in the State of Israel like nobody has ever.”

The conflict between Israel and Hamas is “a fight between civilisation and savagery, between decency and depravity, and between good and evil,” said Trump, who received the warmest response from attendees, as he took aim at President Joe Biden’s administration and avoided criticising his rivals.

The former reality show host, the overwhelming favourite to win the party nomination to run against Biden next year despite facing multiple criminal prosecutions, spoke after sparking fury in recent weeks by describing Lebanon-based Islamist group Hezbollah as “very smart” and criticising Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Also on hand in Las Vegas was Trump’s nearest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who called the October 7 Hamas surprise attack on Israel “the most deadly attack against Jews since the Holocaust itself.”

DeSantis and others pointed to what they said was rising anti-Semitism on US college campuses, and proposed yanking funding for universities and canceling visas for pro-Palestinian foreign students.

“We need cultural chemotherapy to fight this cancer,” Senator Tim Scott said. “Any student with a visa who calls for genocide should be deported.”

The only woman in the race, Nikki Haley, Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, has evoked fears of anti-Semitic attacks on US soil.

“As president I will change the official federal definition of anti-Semitism to include denying Israel’s right to exist,” said Haley, adding she would strip tax breaks from schools that do not combat anti-Semitism.

“College campuses are allowed to have free speech, but they are not free to spread hate that supports terrorism,” she said. “Federal law requires schools to combat anti-Semitism. We will give this law teeth and we will enforce it.”

– Agencies

10:43 am October 29, 2023

Australia on its way to EU trade deal: Farrell

Rhiannon Down

Trade Minister Don Farrell says Australia is making progress towards securing a trade deal with the EU, adding that his job was to “get the best possible deal I can get for Australia”.

Speaking from Osaka Japan, where he is taking part in a G7 trade ministers' meeting, Mr Farrell said increasing trade relations was vital to global security though he did not believe conflicts in Israel and Ukraine pushed the importance of trade deals down the agenda.

“I don't think it makes it harder here and what I think it does is make it more important that we sign up for agreements with our friends in the rest of the world,” Mr Farrell told Sky News.

“We need to reduce that uncertainty, and one way we can do it is by building a trading relationship with our friends, and that includes the Europeans.

“So part of our objective, since coming to office we have not only been to restore that relationship by rebuilding that relationship with China, but to diversify our trading relationship because of the uncertainty.

“I don't think it could be a more important task to achieve that.

“In the last 18 months, we've signed or managed to get through the parliament a free trade agreement with the Indians, that's already produced terrific benefits for our businesses. “We've signed a free trade agreement with the UK, that's already doubling our trade relationship.

“But the big one, of course, is the Europeans: 450 billion people and an economy of $24 trillion, it'll be important once again.”

10:01 am October 29, 2023

PM details concerns on US-China relationship

Rhiannon Down

Anthony Albanese has acknowledged the “strategic competition in our region” between China and the US, refusing to confirm if he trusts China.

“What we need to acknowledge is that we have different political systems and different values,” the Prime Minister told the ABC’s Insiders.

“But what I say is that we will cooperate where we can, we will disagree where we must, and we will engage in our national interests, and that is something that President Biden also supports.

“My concern with the relationship between the US and China is that there has been good engagement at the diplomatic level, at senior ministerial level equivalent in Australian terms, but military-to-military, there is still a lack of engagement.

“We need to build in guardrails, as I spoke at the Shangri-La dialogue in June in Singapore.”

Mr Albanese said that he believed the US and China saw Australia playing a role in facilitating communications between the two countries as a “middle power”.

“We are a middle power, our alliance is very clear,” he said.

“We have an alliance with the US, we are a strategic partner with the US, but we are also a player in the region.

“We will host ASEAN leaders in March next year, and I think that Australia's word is very important in the world.

“We have participated as a G20 member, but we also participate in forums like the G7 and NATO.”

9:58 am October 29, 2023

Albanese 'satisfied with AUKUS progress'

Rhiannon Down

Anthony Albanese says he is satisfied with the progress being made under the AUKUS agreement which will see Australia obtain a fleet of nuclear submarines, following his trip to the US.

“I'm very confident and across the board there has been extraordinary levels of support,”the Prime Minister told the ABC’s Insiders.

“I think President Biden's initiative in sending a bill to Congress with more than $3 billion attached to it to help with the industrial capacity, to build the base here for submarines is very important.

“And will alleviate some concern that was there from some US legislators that somehow the assistance to Australia would detract from the industrial base for the US. I think that has been dealt with.”

Mr Albanese said the AUKUS agreement would herald the arrival of a “jobs bonanza” in Australia which will see the nation “reap benefits for decades to come”.

“Our contribution is appropriate and it is a good thing that the US has contributed as well to alleviate any concern which is there,” he said.

“Look, this is of major benefit, not just to the workers and the base there at Virginia and other places, but particularly for SA and WA.

“This will be a jobs bonanza, and it will do more than the direct jobs as well. A bit like the former auto industry did… and this is highly advanced manufacturing for Australia. We will reap the benefits for decades to come.”

9:31 am October 29, 2023

PM has 'tough messages' to deliver to China: Dutton

Rhiannon Down

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton says he supports Anthony Albanese’s upcoming trip to China, adding that Australia’s strong economic ties with Beijing should continue amid the most “precarious and dangerous” geopolitical conditions since WWII.

“We're very happy for the visit to take place, but there are some tough messages obviously the Prime Minister will have to deliver and I think President Biden has been clear about that as well,” he told Sky News.

“The Prime Minister describes this period as the most precarious and dangerous since the Second World War, and I agree with his assessment.”

Mr Dutton also remarked on the sudden passing of former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang as the last liberal reformer within the ranks.

“Most analysts will point out that China is under a different direction with President (Xi Jinping),” he said.

“That's the reality and we want peace to continue in our region.

“We want there to be a status quo arrangement in relation to Taiwan. We want a very strong trading relationship with China.

“But we have equities and values that are important and our sovereignty is sacrosanct and so we should be working with allies.

“We should be calling out bad behaviour where we see it and obviously the passing of the premier is a sad occurrence and there are other situations so the defence minister (Li Shangfu) obviously has now been removed from office so other officials as well, who have been moved on from their positions.

“There are human rights issues that the Prime Minister no doubt will raise when he's in China as well.

“And I just think we need to be sober and realistic about what is a very uncertain period, not just in Europe, now in the Middle East, and the South China Sea is very difficult to mix.”

9:19 am October 29, 2023

Biden 'supportive of PM stabilising China ties'

Rhiannon Down

Anthony Albanese has spruiked the closeness of the Australia-US alliance, saying that US President Joe Biden had welcomed his upcoming trip to China.

Speaking from Washington where was on an official trip to the US in a pre-recorded interview, the Prime Minister said President Joe Biden was supportive of Australia “stabilising its relationship” with China despite his US counterpart appearing to criticise the leader of the Asian superpower, President Xi Jinping.

“Australia and China have different political systems of course and different values,” Mr Albanese told Sky News.

“One of the reasons why the relationship with the US is so close is because we do have that common commitment to human rights to democracy and to our values.

“So President Biden certainly has welcomed the fact that I am meeting with President Xi in China.

“It is important that Australia stabilises the relationship, that's something that the US is seeking as well.

“And a range of us senior senior people, the Secretary of State and others have made a visit to China in recent months as well. That's a good thing.”

Mr Albanese said a friendship had developed between himself and Mr Biden, describing the relationship between the two countries as one between people with “common values”.

“I find President Biden very easy to deal with; he's warm, he understands Australia, and we get on and that's important,” the Prime Minister told Sky News.

“But importantly, beneath that it's a relationship between Australia and the US.

“It's much more significant than just a relationship between individuals.

“It's a relationship between economies, but importantly, it's a relationship between our people based upon those common values that we share.”

Mr Albanese also confirmed that he had discussed the issue of taming runaway inflation with President Biden, spruiking a landmark deal struck between Australia and the US to be part of its environmental reforms under the inflation reduction act.

“There was indeed discussion of the global economy yesterday, as well,” Mr Albanese said.

“We had meetings around the Cabinet table with a range of secretaries not just in national security, but also the Commerce Secretary, and the issue that we have developed this week. “The third pillar of our relationship is going to be very important for the economy.

“So we have defence, we have the economy, but now we have the compact on clean energy and critical minerals.

“We see that has been very important as our economies transform to clean energy economies in the decades ahead, and Australia has an important role.”