Police warn motorists ahead of Harbour Bridge rally

The Advertiser

2 days ago

Pro-Palestinian protesters will march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge after a court authorised a rally, as police scramble to ensure they have the resources to monitor the event.
Thousands of protesters are expected at the demonstration to highlight what the United Nations has described as "worsening famine conditions" in Gaza.
NSW Police on Saturday urged all protesters to act peacefully and respectfully, warning the rally would be watched closely.
Supreme Court Justice Belinda Rigg rejected a police application to shut down the Sunday march on public safety grounds.
Organised by the Palestinian Action Group Sydney, the protest has garnered support from activists nationwide, human rights and civil liberties groups as well as several MPs and public figures such as former Socceroo Craig Foster.
Justice Rigg in her judgment said arguments the rally would cause disruption on the bridge were not sufficient to bar the protest.
"It is in the very nature of the entitlement to peaceful protest that disruption will be caused to others," she said.
She noted there was significant support for the march from hundreds of organisations including Amnesty International, various churches, the Jewish Council of Australia, the nurses and midwives association and other trade unions.
The decision means protesters will have legal immunity and protections from offences like blocking or obstructing traffic or pedestrians.
Police were "scrambling" to alert road users that the bridge would be closed for the protest but would have the "whole gamut" of officers there to monitor the demonstration, acting deputy commissioner Peter Mckenna said.
"We are there to keep everyone safe ... we will have police right along the route, and we'll be making sure this is done as safely and peacefully as possible," he told reporters on Saturday.
"Anyone who thinks they're going to come along and hijack this protest or do the wrong thing, police will take swift action."
Mr Mckenna said his concerns about public safety had not changed and he urged people to avoid the city as there would be disruptions.
"We will call upon these organisers to really speak to the people coming in to this protest to ensure they do listen to us, that they work with us so we can do our very, very best to make sure people are kept safe," he said.
Greens MP Sue Higginson described the court decision as a win for humanity and a defeat for the "anti-protest Minns Labor government".
"The court was crystal clear that a protest being inconvenient does not mean it can be stopped. In fact, that's the whole point of the protest," she said.
Protesters are expected to march from the CBD to North Sydney, with the bridge closed from 11.30am to about 4pm.
In solidarity with their interstate peers, protesters in Melbourne are also gearing up to rally through the city's CBD, aiming to reach the King Street Bridge.
Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of Australians want tougher government measures to stop Israel's military offensive in Gaza, a poll has found.
Respondents to the YouGov survey published on Friday and commissioned by the Australian Alliance for Peace and Human Rights believe Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's condemnations of Israel have fallen short.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed including more than 17,000 children, according to local health authorities, with reports of dozens of people dead in recent weeks due to starvation.
Israel's campaign began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, reportedly killing 1200 people and taking 250 hostages.
Pro-Palestinian protesters will march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge after a court authorised a rally, as police scramble to ensure they have the resources to monitor the event.
Thousands of protesters are expected at the demonstration to highlight what the United Nations has described as "worsening famine conditions" in Gaza.
NSW Police on Saturday urged all protesters to act peacefully and respectfully, warning the rally would be watched closely.
Supreme Court Justice Belinda Rigg rejected a police application to shut down the Sunday march on public safety grounds.
Organised by the Palestinian Action Group Sydney, the protest has garnered support from activists nationwide, human rights and civil liberties groups as well as several MPs and public figures such as former Socceroo Craig Foster.
Justice Rigg in her judgment said arguments the rally would cause disruption on the bridge were not sufficient to bar the protest.
"It is in the very nature of the entitlement to peaceful protest that disruption will be caused to others," she said.
She noted there was significant support for the march from hundreds of organisations including Amnesty International, various churches, the Jewish Council of Australia, the nurses and midwives association and other trade unions.
The decision means protesters will have legal immunity and protections from offences like blocking or obstructing traffic or pedestrians.
Police were "scrambling" to alert road users that the bridge would be closed for the protest but would have the "whole gamut" of officers there to monitor the demonstration, acting deputy commissioner Peter Mckenna said.
"We are there to keep everyone safe ... we will have police right along the route, and we'll be making sure this is done as safely and peacefully as possible," he told reporters on Saturday.
"Anyone who thinks they're going to come along and hijack this protest or do the wrong thing, police will take swift action."
Mr Mckenna said his concerns about public safety had not changed and he urged people to avoid the city as there would be disruptions.
"We will call upon these organisers to really speak to the people coming in to this protest to ensure they do listen to us, that they work with us so we can do our very, very best to make sure people are kept safe," he said.
Greens MP Sue Higginson described the court decision as a win for humanity and a defeat for the "anti-protest Minns Labor government".
"The court was crystal clear that a protest being inconvenient does not mean it can be stopped. In fact, that's the whole point of the protest," she said.
Protesters are expected to march from the CBD to North Sydney, with the bridge closed from 11.30am to about 4pm.
In solidarity with their interstate peers, protesters in Melbourne are also gearing up to rally through the city's CBD, aiming to reach the King Street Bridge.
Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of Australians want tougher government measures to stop Israel's military offensive in Gaza, a poll has found.
Respondents to the YouGov survey published on Friday and commissioned by the Australian Alliance for Peace and Human Rights believe Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's condemnations of Israel have fallen short.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed including more than 17,000 children, according to local health authorities, with reports of dozens of people dead in recent weeks due to starvation.
Israel's campaign began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, reportedly killing 1200 people and taking 250 hostages.
Pro-Palestinian protesters will march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge after a court authorised a rally, as police scramble to ensure they have the resources to monitor the event.
Thousands of protesters are expected at the demonstration to highlight what the United Nations has described as "worsening famine conditions" in Gaza.
NSW Police on Saturday urged all protesters to act peacefully and respectfully, warning the rally would be watched closely.
Supreme Court Justice Belinda Rigg rejected a police application to shut down the Sunday march on public safety grounds.
Organised by the Palestinian Action Group Sydney, the protest has garnered support from activists nationwide, human rights and civil liberties groups as well as several MPs and public figures such as former Socceroo Craig Foster.
Justice Rigg in her judgment said arguments the rally would cause disruption on the bridge were not sufficient to bar the protest.
"It is in the very nature of the entitlement to peaceful protest that disruption will be caused to others," she said.
She noted there was significant support for the march from hundreds of organisations including Amnesty International, various churches, the Jewish Council of Australia, the nurses and midwives association and other trade unions.
The decision means protesters will have legal immunity and protections from offences like blocking or obstructing traffic or pedestrians.
Police were "scrambling" to alert road users that the bridge would be closed for the protest but would have the "whole gamut" of officers there to monitor the demonstration, acting deputy commissioner Peter Mckenna said.
"We are there to keep everyone safe ... we will have police right along the route, and we'll be making sure this is done as safely and peacefully as possible," he told reporters on Saturday.
"Anyone who thinks they're going to come along and hijack this protest or do the wrong thing, police will take swift action."
Mr Mckenna said his concerns about public safety had not changed and he urged people to avoid the city as there would be disruptions.
"We will call upon these organisers to really speak to the people coming in to this protest to ensure they do listen to us, that they work with us so we can do our very, very best to make sure people are kept safe," he said.
Greens MP Sue Higginson described the court decision as a win for humanity and a defeat for the "anti-protest Minns Labor government".
"The court was crystal clear that a protest being inconvenient does not mean it can be stopped. In fact, that's the whole point of the protest," she said.
Protesters are expected to march from the CBD to North Sydney, with the bridge closed from 11.30am to about 4pm.
In solidarity with their interstate peers, protesters in Melbourne are also gearing up to rally through the city's CBD, aiming to reach the King Street Bridge.
Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of Australians want tougher government measures to stop Israel's military offensive in Gaza, a poll has found.
Respondents to the YouGov survey published on Friday and commissioned by the Australian Alliance for Peace and Human Rights believe Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's condemnations of Israel have fallen short.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed including more than 17,000 children, according to local health authorities, with reports of dozens of people dead in recent weeks due to starvation.
Israel's campaign began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, reportedly killing 1200 people and taking 250 hostages.
Pro-Palestinian protesters will march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge after a court authorised a rally, as police scramble to ensure they have the resources to monitor the event.
Thousands of protesters are expected at the demonstration to highlight what the United Nations has described as "worsening famine conditions" in Gaza.
NSW Police on Saturday urged all protesters to act peacefully and respectfully, warning the rally would be watched closely.
Supreme Court Justice Belinda Rigg rejected a police application to shut down the Sunday march on public safety grounds.
Organised by the Palestinian Action Group Sydney, the protest has garnered support from activists nationwide, human rights and civil liberties groups as well as several MPs and public figures such as former Socceroo Craig Foster.
Justice Rigg in her judgment said arguments the rally would cause disruption on the bridge were not sufficient to bar the protest.
"It is in the very nature of the entitlement to peaceful protest that disruption will be caused to others," she said.
She noted there was significant support for the march from hundreds of organisations including Amnesty International, various churches, the Jewish Council of Australia, the nurses and midwives association and other trade unions.
The decision means protesters will have legal immunity and protections from offences like blocking or obstructing traffic or pedestrians.
Police were "scrambling" to alert road users that the bridge would be closed for the protest but would have the "whole gamut" of officers there to monitor the demonstration, acting deputy commissioner Peter Mckenna said.
"We are there to keep everyone safe ... we will have police right along the route, and we'll be making sure this is done as safely and peacefully as possible," he told reporters on Saturday.
"Anyone who thinks they're going to come along and hijack this protest or do the wrong thing, police will take swift action."
Mr Mckenna said his concerns about public safety had not changed and he urged people to avoid the city as there would be disruptions.
"We will call upon these organisers to really speak to the people coming in to this protest to ensure they do listen to us, that they work with us so we can do our very, very best to make sure people are kept safe," he said.
Greens MP Sue Higginson described the court decision as a win for humanity and a defeat for the "anti-protest Minns Labor government".
"The court was crystal clear that a protest being inconvenient does not mean it can be stopped. In fact, that's the whole point of the protest," she said.
Protesters are expected to march from the CBD to North Sydney, with the bridge closed from 11.30am to about 4pm.
In solidarity with their interstate peers, protesters in Melbourne are also gearing up to rally through the city's CBD, aiming to reach the King Street Bridge.
Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of Australians want tougher government measures to stop Israel's military offensive in Gaza, a poll has found.
Respondents to the YouGov survey published on Friday and commissioned by the Australian Alliance for Peace and Human Rights believe Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's condemnations of Israel have fallen short.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed including more than 17,000 children, according to local health authorities, with reports of dozens of people dead in recent weeks due to starvation.
Israel's campaign began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, reportedly killing 1200 people and taking 250 hostages.