Concerning footage has captured the moment a woman and child shouted ‘f*** the Jews’ following an ‘anti-Israel’ rally in Sydney.
The footage, which was shared by the Australian Jewish Association on social media, shows a woman and young boy walking through crowds at Coogee Beach, where a group of motorcycle riders carrying Palestinian flags had engaged in a standoff with Israeli demonstrators on Saturday.
In the video, the pair are seen passing a group of protesters holding Israeli and Australian flags, when the young boy, who is holding a football, yells out “f*** the Jews”.
The woman quickly echoes his message, yelling “f*** the Jews” out loud.
The boy then appears to look back at the woman and smile as they continue to walk off.
“Nothing quite says ‘free Palestine’ like ‘f*** the Jews’,” the Australian Jewish Association wrote on X.
“This is what happens when Labor governments allow antisemitic incitement to go unchecked.”
About a dozen motorbikes and a handful of cars flags from Al Quds community centre in Regents Park, travelled from the western-Sydney suburb of Lidcombe, to Coogee in the city’s east, on Saturday evening.
The convoy, which displayed Palestinian flags, was led by organiser Zaky Mallah, the first Australian to be charged with terrorism offences after threatening to blow up ASIO and DFAT offices in 2003.
Escorted by police, the ride was largely uneventful until they reached Coogee, where nearly 100 protesters bearing Israeli flags were waiting on the beachfront.
There was a tense standoff between the two groups, until police managed to separate them, and the riders continued on their way.
Prominent Palestine activist Fahad Ali joined a raft of Sydney’s Jewish community members condemning the ride.
“This is a deliberately provocative action. It has no strategic purpose. No one I know in the Palestinian community is on board with this,” he wrote on Twitter, now known as X.
Mr Ali said he couldn’t vouch for the group, and they’re not known to established organising groups.
NSW Jewish Board of Deputies President David Ossip was more scathing in his remarks, made despite Saturday being the Jewish holy day, Shabbat.
“There is no reason why a notionally peaceful anti-Israel or pro-Palestinian protest needs to make its way from Lidcombe to Coogee, it is clear that the route has been chosen for one purpose – to intimidate and scare the Jewish community,” Mr Ossip told The Daily Telegraph.
“This is psychological warfare and it should not be tolerated in Sydney. I share the outrage and frustration that the community is feeling.”
Vaucluse MP Kellie Sloane also said she was “deeply troubled” by the motorcade.
“The pro-Palestinian motorcyclists have chosen a deliberately provocative route into the heart of Sydney’s largest Jewish community. There is no doubt in my mind this is designed to intimidate,” she wrote on X.
The motorcade protest was just one demonstration held in Sydney on Saturday, after pro-Palestine activists took to the water at Sydney’s Port Botany and rallied against an Israeli shipping line ZIM who previously announced it was attempting to dock.
Protesters gathered on land and also on jet skis adjacent to the massive container ship, and were heard chanting, “Resistance is justified when Palestine is occupied.”
The rally went ahead on Saturday despite calls from the NSW Premier Chris Minns against any attempt to “block the boat”.
“I just want to make it clear that living in a free country doesn’t mean that you can walk down to the port and stop lawful trade between Australia and its trading partners across the world,” Mr Minns told 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Tuesday.
It is understood the ship was not at port as its crew had decided not to dock in light of the protest.