The major Australian city of Sydney saw one of its largest pro-Palestine rallies to date when a sea of red flowed through the streets in the heart of the city. On June 1, thousands of Australians holding Palestinian flags and placards marched outside Town Hall in Sydney’s central business district (CBD) against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
On the same day as the protest, over 30 Palestinians were shot while seeking aid in Gaza, and the region’s only dialysis hospital in the north was destroyed. Meanwhile, mediators Qatar and Egypt renewed talks for a 60-day truce.
The demonstration in Sydney began with a stream of fiery speeches by the organizers of the mobilization, including leaders from the Palestinian diaspora, student and teacher activists, and the Indigenous Aboriginal activists of Australia.
Palestine Action Group Sydney has been organizing protests and demonstrations across the city every week since Israel began its genocide in Gaza in October 2023. According to the organizers, over 10,000 people joined the rally this Sunday. The demonstration also included a block of “Jews against Occupation ‘48”, an organization of Australian Jews in support of Palestinian, human, and national rights.
One could feel the frustration and anger in the air. Protesters beat on drums, pots and pans, demanding sanctions on Israel and blaming the Albanese government of complicity in Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people.
As hopes for a lasting ceasefire continue to fade, desperation and hunger in Gaza are intensifying. After more than two months of total blockade, Israel is now permitting limited humanitarian aid into the territory. On May 30, the UN issued a warning that the entire population of 2.3 million people in Gaza is at risk of famine. This follows a mid-May report stating that one in five Palestinians is already facing starvation.
Mohamad Harb marched with an eight-foot-tall banner displaying the history of Israeli occupation of Palestine and military offenses in Lebanon. A regular attendee of the weekly rallies for over a year, Harb said he keeps showing up for humanity. “Israel kills children, old people, and has no respect for international law at all. Everyone knows the truth, but they turn a blind eye to it. Australia needs to stop arming Israel,” he said.
University of Sydney’s Student Council member Deaglan Godwin said, “We’re seeing an escalation of the genocide in Gaza. We’re seeing Israel rip off the mask and openly declare its genocidal intent to ethnically cleanse the people of Gaza. As the situation in Gaza worsens, we see at the very least, a flicker of greater resistance and energy from people.”
On the role of the Australian government in Israel’s actions in Palestine, Godwin remarked, “Our government has always been a close ally of Israel. From the beginning of the partition plan in 1948, our government has given diplomatic, economic, and military aid to Israel. Our leaders, alongside other leaders of the West, have provided cover to what Israel is doing.”
Godwin believes that only mass pressure and movement will force the Australian government to sanction and sever economic and military ties with the state of Israel.
Australia and Israel have regularly signed trade, joint research and development, and science-related agreements. There has also been discussion of further cooperation in communications, agricultural technology, water management, biotechnology, and defense.
But why does the Australian State support Israel so stridently?
A powerful aspect of the movement opposing the genocide in Gaza has been the solidarity between Palestinians and Aussie Aboriginal communities, united by their shared experiences of colonization and resistance.
Australia and Israel were both established through the displacement and violence against Indigenous populations. Today, they serve as key extensions of Western imperial influence in their respective regions – Asia-Pacific and West Asia – exemplifying the enduring patterns of settler-colonialism.
Australia’s close relationship with Israel isn’t about some shared rebellious spirit or just blindly following the US. Australia’s support for Israel aligns with its own economic and strategic interests, both in West Asia and globally. The Australian government’s stance is not half-hearted; it’s a deliberate choice shaped by its broader capitalist and geopolitical priorities.
A recent poll commissioned by ActionAid Australia in collaboration with several other international organizations shows that 82% of Australians think that Israel’s deliberate blocking of aid into Gaza cannot be justified. More than two in three Australians believe the government should do more to ensure civilians have access to food, water, and medicine.
Macquarie University student and social activist Eddie Stevenson questions the Australian government’s words and actions in support of Israel’s military offenses. According to her, the Albanese government holds itself more accountable to the rich than to the common people. “They care about having strong allies for Australia in a region where there’s oil, resources, trade routes, things that are very important to business and commercial interests. Which is why I think protests are so important; they will not listen to reason. We have to disrupt until they are forced to change what they are doing,” Stevenson said.
“A permanent ceasefire is an absolute bare minimum, and that was the state of affairs before this genocide began, and what led up to this genocide, so we can’t settle for that. We need the full liberation of Palestinians, an end to the apartheid, and an end to the constant process of ethnic cleansing that’s been going on for the past 77 years. We need the right of return for the Palestinian people,” Stevenson added.
One of the activists involved in the Palestine Action Group Sydney, Damien Ridgwell, said that “it is imperative to continue protesting as Israel can only continue carrying out this genocide because of the complicity of governments in the West.”
He added that we’re not seeing people’s will reflected in democratically elected governments’ policies because “unfortunately, there are a lot of big businesses invested in war. It has much to do with the legacy of the United States’ empire and the domination of the Middle East region. Australia is also an imperialist nation that has a shameful history. Its ties and alliance with the US have bound the Australian governments to carry out a bipartisan policy of supporting Israel in its oppression of the Palestinians.”
The rally ended with the announcement of the next protest scheduled for June 8 and the promise to keep fighting for a “free Palestine”. What began as a march became a message – that Palestine is not alone, and neither is the fight for justice.
Apurva Chaudhry is a Sydney-based journalist.
