8m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:50am
‘We’re going to go back with 150 to 200 boats’, flotilla activist tells Sydney
Juliet Lamont, one of the Australian activists detained by Israeli authorities after attempting to deliver aid to Gaza, also addressed the rally.
She said the torture, abuse and human rights violations she suffered was nothing compared to the suffering endured by the Palestinians who were incarcerated.
Juliet Lamont was part of the Sumud Flotilla. (ABC News: Jack Fisher)
“There are 11,000 Palestinians in prisons, and 400 of them are children.
“At night-time we could hear the crying of some of those kids in the prison that we were in, we could see the Alsatians going into those prisons and we could hear the horror, we could hear the children crying for their mothers.
“The eyes of the world were on us, but the eyes of the world are not on Palestinians, and they need to be.”
She accused the Australian government of being “morally bankrupt” over its lack of action in sanctioning Israel.
She told the rally the flotilla would return.
“Next time we’re going to go back with 150 to 200 boats,” she said to cheers.
“You should join me. Join us because I’m not a very good sailor but I’ve got a fire in my belly and I’m going to go back, and I’ll get you on a boat.”
Reporting by Jean Kennedy
17m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:41am
Jailed Sumud Flotilla participant addresses Sydney crowd
(ABC News: Jack Fisher)
AbuBakir Rafiq was among the Australian activists on the global Sumud Flotilla who was jailed in Israel. He returned home on Friday.
He told the Sydney crowd of his experiences while detained, and how he was trying to recover after a “difficult journey”.
“When I first arrived to prison, I was thrown into a cage 4 by 6 metres with 83 other men. I was unaware of where I was, they refused to tell us,” he said.
(ABC News: Jack Fisher)
He described how he tried to get his bearings and managed to look outside the cage where he saw two Palestinians detained “with their hands, feet chained and blindfolded”.
“When I was released out of prison, I was so happy but I thought ‘What about those two Palestinians’?
“I was freed alongside the other activists, but what about the 10,000 Palestinian hostages that are being held in prisons — innocent mothers, innocent children, innocent fathers that have been stripped of their right to humanity, that have been stripped of everything.”
25m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:33am
Accountability needed amid ceasefire, Brisbane protester says
Katrina Barben says she attended the rally to call for international recognition of Palestine.
She believes Palestinians need to be protected if the ceasefire holds.
“There needs to be accountability for the atrocities that have been committed,” she says.
“Ceasefire is a good thing … but it’s not a promise that everything’s going to be ok.”
Katrina Barben attended the Brisbane rally alongside about 1000 other protesters (ABC News: Emma Johnson)
34m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:24am
Crowds gathered in Brisbane
More than one thousand people have gathered at Queens Gardens in Brisbane to show solidarity.
Protesters will march a loop through the city shortly.
Participants gathered before marching through the CBD (ABC News: Emma Johnson)
37m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:21am
Peaceful crowd in Melbourne
As the large crowd of protesters makes its way down St Kilda Road, attendees remain peaceful in their activism.
And while chants ring out through the street, protesters move slowly and carefully through the sea of people.
(ABC News)
(ABC News)
39m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:19am
Protesters march in Hobart
(ABC News)
Hobart’s wet conditions haven’t deterred protesters from gathering at the city’s waterfront before marching onto the nearby Parliament Lawns.
The march, organised by the Tasmanian Palestine Advocacy Network, called for Palestinian liberation and self-determination.
Speakers called for Israel to release Hobart woman Madeleine Habib, whose ship the Conscience was intercepted by the Israeli navy on Wednesday while sailing toward Gaza as part of the Freedom Flotilla.
50m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:08am
‘They scuffed us up a bit’: Gaza flotilla members speak in Sydney
Australian members of a group who tried to break Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza last week have spoken of their treatment while detained in Israel.
Sporting a sling in Sydney’s Hyde Park, Surya McEwen said he had been physically abused, and verbally abused by Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir while in detention.
Mr McEwan was held in Israel’s infamous Ketziot Prisonalong before being deported back to Australia this week.
“They wanted to scare us, they scuffed us up a bit, we experienced some violence, some sexual violence, some abuse,” he said.
“We were all in that cage … crammed in for [Itamar] Ben-Gvir to have a little media moment with us; it was a pleasure to call him a child killer to his face.”
Surya McEwen (ABC News: Jack Fisher)
56m agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 4:02am
📹: Pro-Palestinian protesters gather at Hyde Park, Sydney
“We have to keep the pressure on,” a speaker can be heard telling the gathered crowd in Sydney’s Hyde Park.
Palestinian flags and watermelon-patterned clothing are seen throughout the group.
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1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:55am
Melbourne protesters make their way to US consulate
The march is underway in Melbourne’s CBD.
The last time a pro-Palestinian rally this size went through the city, they were heading for the Kingsway Bridge before they were stopped by police.
Today, the police are escorting the crowd down St Kilda Road to their new finish line: the US consulate.
(ABC News)
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:50am
‘Not really trusting what Trump is putting on the table’ says organiser and activist
The first-phase peace plan agreement between Israel and Hamas deal has provided “some hope”, says activist and organiser of the Free Palestine Sunday rallies in Naarm/Melbourne Sarah Baarini, but is skeptical of Trump’s involvement.
“There is some hope and obviously some much-needed respite for Palestinians on the ground who have been witnessing and experiencing constant bombardment over the last two years,” she said.
“But there is also a lot of skepticism; we’re not really trusting the Trump administration and what they’re putting on the table.”
Sarah Baarini is the organiser of the Free Palestine Sunday rallies in Naarm, Melbourne. (ABC News)
She said it was important to remember that 58 per cent of Gaza has been occupied under the peace deal by the Israeli occupation.
“There are a lot of question marks still,” she said. “A peace deal does not mean liberation for the Palestinian people; there is still so much that needs to be resolved.”
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:43am
More than 100 attend Bega rally
Eurobodalla resident and Palestinian-Australian Aroub Lahham spoke at the Rally For Palestine held in Bega, where roughly 120 people attended.
Lahham said the ceasefire was a step in the right direction but “the war is not over yet”.
“It doesn’t mean that our fight is over, we’ll continue to speak up and support Palestine and talk about all the generational trauma that they’ve created,” she said.
“It’s a cause for celebration but unfortunately it’s never going to be the solution, and they [Palestinians] will never have their life back.”
(ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
She said seeing so many people show up in support makes her feel less alone, particularly while living in a regional location.
“Having people around you that support the same issues that you worry about and be with you in public, provides that community feeling that I long for here on the south-east coast,” Lahham said.
(ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:38am
Sydney attendance down, but ‘there’s a lot more work to be done’
In Sydney, the lower-profile route and the Gaza peace deal may have combined to keep a lid on numbers.
Organisers had anticipated that close to 40,000 people would take part in the proposed march to the Opera House.
Protester Ash Walker agreed the latest peace plan could potentially be a factor, but says she wants to “keep supporting the Palestinian cause”.
“I am very, very happy there’s been a ceasefire.
“Obviously, that’s a massive thing for Palestinians, but I do think there’s a lot more work to be done in supporting people in Gaza to get their lives back and regain the safety and security of housing and sanitation, their jobs and food, all that kind of stuff.”
(ABC News: Nick Dole)
She says she felt it was important to continue protesting as it was still early days.
“I think obviously when we start to see everything moving forward, which is a really, really wonderful thing. People start to feel a little less stressed about the situation, so it’s easy to start to feel complacent that things are OK now.
“But I still think a lot of people are not OK in Sydney, so I think it’s important that we still show up, that the government continues to do whatever they can to aid people in Gaza.”
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:33am
Despite ceasefire, need to keep ‘focus on starving children in Gaza’
NSW Upper House MP and Labor friend of Palestine, Sarah Kaine, told the ABC that while the ceasefire was welcomed, it was important that “we don’t forget what’s happening in Gaza”.
“Despite the progress, despite optimistic signs, we need to make sure that we keep the focus on those starving children in Gaza,” she said.
(ABC News: Nick Dole)
She said Labor for Palestine was on the record calling for sanctions on Israel and “we’ll keep calling for those”.
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:25am
‘Always was, always will be’ chants sing out between speeches
Between speeches in Melbourne, chants erupted from the crowd.
They sing:
Always was, always will be, Aboriginal land
From the river to sea, Palestine will be free
From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever
Always was, always will be, Aboriginal land
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:19am
Dozens attend rally in Warrnambool
(Supplied: Jemila Rushton)
Dozens attended the march and rally in Warrnambool, 260 kilometres south-west of Melbourne.
Organised by Wannon for Palestine, the group of 70 marched from Point Ritchie to Warrnambool Surf Lifesaving Club.
An organiser, Jemila Rushton, said regional voices can make a huge difference.
“There’s often a sentiment of what can we do, we live in a regional community … [but] people in regional communities have an incredibly strong voice and an incredible role to play,” she said.
(Supplied: Jemila Rushton)
1h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 3:09am
In pictures: Hundreds gather for Coffs Harbour march
Sophia McCaughan was at the protest in Coffs Harbour earlier.
Here are some photos she captured of the march.
(ABC Mid North Coast: Sophia McCaughan)
(ABC Mid North Coast: Sophia McCaughan)
(ABC Mid North Coast: Sophia McCaughan)
2h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 2:55am
Canberra protesters vow to continue
(ABC News: Mark Moore)
More than 300 people have gathered in the capital, including Diana Abdel-Rahman from the Palestine Action Group Canberra.
“We know this ceasefire is only the beginning. Until there is a liberated Palestine this movement is only starting,” she said.
“Until there is justice, this movement continues.”
(ABC News: Mark Moore)
Rana Tayara grew up in Lebanon and says she doesn’t trust that Israel won’t break the latest ceasefire.
“They call it a peace deal, there’s no peace in the ruins of Gaza,” she told the crowd.
“There is no peace … when the hungry and the displaced are told to be grateful for a pause in their destruction.”
The crowd is now marching across Commonwealth Bridge towards Parliament House.
(ABC News: Elizabeth Byrne)
2h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 2:51am
Sydney protesters wary of ceasefire
In Sydney protesters are wary that the ceasefire in Gaza would not mean peace across the wider middle-east region.
At Hyde Park, Ezra Kurt said she wanted Israel to stop “completely bombing” other neighbouring nations.
“We’re a little bit relieved but let’s be real a ceasefire has been called several times this year and last year, I don’t buy it personally,” Ezra Kurt said.
“While a ceasefire has been called for Palestine, for Gaza, they have abundantly been bombing south of Lebanon now.
“If they’ve stopped at one spot, they’re not completely stopping.”
Ezra Kurt in Hyde Park as crowds gather for the rally in Sydney (ABC News)
2h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 2:44am
‘How can we trust Trump?’: Senator Lidia Thorpe asks protesters
“Ceasefire, huh?” Senator Lidia Thorpe said to Melbourne crowds, gathered to watch speeches, referring to the tentative ceasefire arrangement between Israel and Hamas.
“How can we trust Trump?
“It has been an ongoing, sophisticated genocide on these lands for over 250 years, so don’t believe in no ceasefire.”
(ABC News)
2h agoSun 12 Oct 2025 at 2:27am
In pictures: Melbourne