Law Enforcement Inquiry Finds Protest Against Israeli President’s Visit Largely Peaceful, Minimal Violence Evidence

An investigation into a Sydney rally opposing Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit has so far concluded that protestors were “largely peaceful” and there is “limited evidence of physical violence on the part of the protesters.”

The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) initiated its inquiry into the February protest at Sydney’s Town Hall on Monday, examining issues including police use of OC spray and allegations of “police boasting about gratuitous force.”

The LECC launched its investigation following widespread reports of police brutality at the protest, including viral video footage showing officers punching multiple protestors and forcibly removing Muslim worshippers during sunset prayers.

Monday’s opening address was broadcast publicly before transitioning to five weeks of private hearings. The watchdog agreed to hold a portion of the hearing in private after NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon sought to delay the scheduled hearing by nearly a month to move the entire process behind closed doors.

Counsel assisting the LECC, Kirsten Edwards SC, stated in her opening address that evidence remains under review. To date, findings indicate: “limited evidence of physical violence by protestors, with the protest appearing to have been largely peaceful in its early stages.”

“Later behavior among protestors, described by police as aggressive, was primarily verbal and linked to efforts to march,” Edwards explained.

Video evidence also shows organizers attempting to mediate conflicts between protestors and police.

Police initially charged 30 individuals with offenses including hindering arrests and assaulting officers. Nearly a dozen of those charged have since had their charges withdrawn.

Edwards noted the LECC would evaluate police conduct under the Public Assembly Restriction Declaration (PARD), a law later deemed unconstitutional by the state’s highest court shortly after the protest.

On Friday, seven additional charges were withdrawn at Downing Centre Local Court, following four withdrawals in recent months. This reduced the number of individuals facing a joint hearing from 25 to 17.

Police announced a joint court hearing for 25 initially charged individuals, scheduled for six weeks beginning July 2027. After recent charge withdrawals, the remaining 17 will now face the court.

The LECC is reviewing over 400 public complaints and 1,000 hours of footage documenting concerns such as OC spray use on mobility-impaired individuals, frequent pushing and shoving during dispersals, police advancing at speed toward fleeing protestors, excessive force during arrests, and officers allegedly celebrating “gratuitous force.”

Additional allegations include protestors being confined to areas from which they could not exit, allegedly termed “kettling,” alongside instances of officers showing care for elderly and vulnerable individuals despite potential hazards.

Edwards specified the LECC is analyzing case studies involving a 60-year-old protestor struck in the face and the “prayer incident” involving Muslim worshippers being forcibly removed.

The commission is also assessing whether police conduct was systemic or implicitly sanctioned by senior officers. Preliminary evidence suggests a pre-protest briefing instructed officers to prevent marching and maintain a static demonstration, though no official records of the meeting exist.

David Sulan SC, representing Commissioner Lanyon, acknowledged “an unprecedented level of serious verbal abuse directed at police” during the protest, while noting “many positive acts of policing” occurred both beforehand and during the event.

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