Nine pro-Palestinian supporters charged after causing major delays on Melbourne roads

Nine Pro-Palestinian supporters have been charged after a group of about 40 protesters staged a six hour long blockade on a busy Melbourne road.

Free Palestine, Anti Israel Protesters block Todd road from both ends. Todd road houses several businesses including Boeing Aerostructures Australia. Protesters were claiming that they were concreted into a drum and could not move .Picture: Jason Edwards

Nine pro-Palestinian protesters have been arrested and charged with multiple offences, including obstructing an emergency service worker, after they caused major traffic delays on Melbourne’s roads on Monday morning.

The two protest groups of about 40 people blockaded either side of Todd Road in Port Melbourne, causing road closures in the area until about midday, with some members of the group physically securing themselves to objects along the road.

One group held signs reading “Free Palestine, Land Back. Stop Arming Israel. F..k Pinkwashing Genocide”, while another protester held a sign reading “How much more blak blood must die before things change?”.

Protesters used a car parked across two lanes to block traffic, while fellow protesters sat in front of the car with their arms glued inside a barrel filled with cement and painted with the colours of the Palestinian flag.

Further down the road a separate group parked a van across two lanes while using megaphones to chant “stop arming Israel”.

Free Palestine, Anti Israel Protesters block Todd road from both ends. Todd road houses several businesses including Boeing Aerostructures Australia. Picture: Jason Edwards

In a video posted to X, protesters could be heard chanting, ”sack the generals and their bosses, their profits are our losses!”.

One protester attached themselves by the neck to the steering wheel of a vehicle to prevent emergency crews removing it.

Trucks and cars were forced to wait out the protest that began around 6am in front of the federal government’s Defence Science and Technology Group building and the Leonardo defence company, the targets of the protest.

Victoria Police said the nine protesters arrested and later charged were the individuals who “locked themselves on to vehicles and stationary objects in the area”.

“Nine people were arrested and charged with public nuisance, obstruct emergency service worker and obstruct roadway. All nine were bailed to appear in court at a later date,” a police statement said.

Free Palestine, Anti Israel Protesters block Todd road from both ends. Todd road houses several businesses including Boeing Aerostructures Australia. Picture: Jason Edwards

“Our priority … is to keep the peace and ensure the event is safe … While individuals have the right to protest lawfully, we strongly encourage those attending to protest peacefully and without impacting the broader community.”

Protest organiser the Whistleblowers, Activists and Communities Alliance said it was protesting “against Australia’s complicity in Israel’s war on Gaza”.

“Several people have locked themselves on to vehicles and concrete barrels, obstructing six lanes of inbound and outbound traffic, preventing worker access to the weapons facilities,” the group said on X.

“DSTG receives hundreds of millions of dollars each year from the government and employs thousands of scientists in ‘strategic alliances’ with private weapons interests. Today we are here to STOP businesses for companies that support weapons and materials to kill Palestinians … our politicians have Palestinian blood on their hands.”