{"id":280005,"date":"2026-02-08T03:38:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-08T03:38:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/280005\/"},"modified":"2026-02-08T03:38:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T03:38:07","slug":"standoff-over-site-of-rally-against-israeli-president-as-protest-group-prepares-court-challenge-to-nsw-police-powers-new-south-wales-politics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/280005\/","title":{"rendered":"Standoff over site of rally against Israeli president as protest group prepares court challenge to NSW police powers | New South Wales politics"},"content":{"rendered":"

Protesters planning to march through Sydney\u2019s CBD during the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog\u2019s visit are being urged to take an alternate route, as the Palestine Action<\/a> Group prepares to challenge the premier\u2019s use of special powers before the rally.<\/p>\n

The acting assistant commissioner of New South Wales police, Paul Dunstan, told reporters on Sunday negotiations were continuing with Josh Lees, from the Palestine Action Group, over the location of Monday night\u2019s march.<\/p>\n

The group plans to march from the town hall to the state parliament, in a breach of the public assembly restriction declaration extended by police on Tuesday<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sign up: AU Breaking News email<\/a><\/p>\n

The extension prevents the authorisation of protests under the form 1 system, effectively banning marches in designated areas without the risk of arrest. The current designated area includes the town hall and takes in the northern part of the CBD and the eastern suburbs, but excludes Hyde Park.<\/p>\n

Dunstan urged the group to relocate to Hyde Park and march to Belmore Park instead, saying it would \u201csafely facilitate a peaceful protest on the streets of Sydney\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have concerns about the size of town hall, and possibility of overflow into public areas, which could lead to conflict between police and protesters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor that reason, among many, I would ask them to consider relocating and to continue negotiating with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dunstan stressed Lees \u201cwent to great efforts to outline an intent and desire for a peaceful and safe protest\u201d.<\/p>\n

The premier, Chris Minns, said the alternate route \u201cwould have dramatically lowered tensions in the city\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would have been a clear way of demonstrating that there\u2019s protests that can take place \u2026 but also a respectful way of ensuring that those who are in the city, who are mourning after the worst terrorism event in the country\u2019s history, won\u2019t be subject to a confrontation on city streets,\u201d he said at a seperate press conference on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo far, that opportunity hasn\u2019t been taken up, but NSW police will continue to negotiate with the protest organisers right up until the last moment, and we hope that common sense prevails.\u201d<\/p>\n

Minns invoked the state\u2019s \u201cmajor event\u201d legislation on Saturday<\/a>, granting police additional powers to move people on, close specific locations and issue orders to prevent disruption or risks to public safety. Anyone who fails to comply with police directions may face penalties, including fines of up to $5,500.<\/p>\n

Lees confirmed on Sunday the Palestine Action Group would urgently file proceedings in the NSW supreme court on Monday to challenge Minns\u2019 use of the powers, which he said \u201cthreaten the civil liberties of everyone in NSW\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are taking Chris Minns to court again. He has imposed sweeping search, exclusion and conduct restrictions across our city in an attempt to shut down dissent,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe declaration gives police unprecedented authority across central Sydney for the duration of the visit, effectively criminalising political expression and assembly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese laws are designed to intimidate and deter people from speaking out against war crimes and injustice.<\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of defending human rights, the NSW government is using emergency-style powers to shield a visiting head of state from public scrutiny and accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n

A separate legal challenge by the group<\/a> against NSW\u2019s anti-protest laws, passed after the Bondi attack is also ongoing.<\/p>\n

When asked about the possible challenge, Dunstan said it was a matter for the government, not the police.<\/p>\n

He said more than 3,000 police officers would be deployed across Sydney during Herzog\u2019s visit, with people to expect motorcades, clearway zones, and fencing and barriers to be up in the CBD over the next few days.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the tensions associated with this visit, you will see additional numbers, but people should feel confident to go about their business over the next few days as per normal,\u201d Dunstan said.<\/p>\n

He also advised that those planning to attend the city from 5.30pm onwards should be aware of the significant police operation and potential protest activity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do not want conflict. We want to ensure that this is conducted in a peaceful and safe manner, and I\u2019m confident that we can achieve that by working together with the Palestinian Action Group,\u201d Dunstan said.<\/p>\n

Minns urged \u201crespect and calm as we get through the next four days\u201d.<\/p>\n

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, invited Herzog after the 14 December antisemitic attack at Bondi, saying his visit was intended to foster \u201ca greater sense of unity\u201d. Major Jewish organisations and federal and state governments have welcomed Herzog\u2019s visit as a moment of profound significance.<\/p>\n

Other groups, including some Jewish Australian organisations, say the Israeli president should be barred from entering the country. They allege he incited genocide against Palestinians, pointing to a UN commission, which does not speak on behalf of the UN, which concluded in September 2025 that Israel<\/a> had committed genocide in Gaza and that Herzog, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the then defence minister, Yoav Gallant, \u201chave incited the commission of genocide\u201d.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s foreign ministry rejected the commission\u2019s report, calling it \u201cdistorted and false\u201d and claiming it \u201crelies entirely on Hamas falsehoods\u201d.<\/p>\n

Palestinian Australian Raneem Emad, who plans to protest against Herzog\u2019s visit on Monday, said the visit felt \u201clike a slap in the face\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo many of us have lost tens, if not dozens, of family members in Gaza, and no one understands that feeling like another Palestinian mother or someone else who has unfortunately had to face such traumatic loss,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Protesters planning to march through Sydney\u2019s CBD during the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog\u2019s visit are being urged to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":280006,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-280005","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-top-news","11":"tag-top-stories","12":"tag-topnews","13":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=280005"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280005\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/280006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=280005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=280005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=280005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}