Footballers, politicians, human rights activists and more were among the estimated 90,000 people who united in Sydney on Sunday, making history in the pelting rain to protest the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza.
The Harbour Bridge was closed for five hours as the crowd, led in part by WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, former Socceroo Craig Foster and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, marched from Lang Park to North Sydney, calling for sanctions against Israel and the free flow of aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza.
On Monday morning, retired Australian footballer and lifelong human rights activist Foster issued a celebratory message to those who marched on Sunday.
“I thank and congratulate all who yesterday showed the immense strength of the Australian conscience and urge everyone to join together as a powerful, collective force against all hatred, violence and racism, for equal rights for all, and for Australia as a consistent and powerful actor for a just and peaceful world,” Foster wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Foster, Assange and Moore were joined on the Harbour Bridge by state Labor MPs – Penny Sharpe, Bob Nanva, Julia Finn, Sarah Kaine, Stephen Lawrence, Anthony D’Adam, Cameron Murphy and Lynda Voltz – who defied Premier Chris Minns by attending, plus crossbenchers including Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi. Other high-profilers in attendance included journalist Antoinette Lattouf, actor Meyne Wyatt and model Luisa Dunn.
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Lattouf described her presence in the front row as a “heavy hearted honour”, writing on X on Sunday evening alongside a photo of her section: “People power. I had the heavy hearted honour of helping lead the march – flanked by defenders of press freedom, Palestinian human rights leaders, unionists, academics, and politicians from across the spectrum defending Palestinian human rights and against genocide.”
Former Labor premier and ex-minister for foreign affairs Bob Carr was also in attendance, as was former Greens candidate for Grayndler Hannah Thomas, who is recovering from an injury inflicted by police during a protest in June. She wore an eye patch with the colours of the Palestinian flag.