Israeli President Isaac Herzog and First Lady Michal Herzog have arrived in Australia for an official trip that follows a deadly shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney’s Bondi Beach in December. Herzog’s office said the visit is meant to show solidarity with Jewish communities across the country after the attack.
The trip is taking place at the invitation of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and includes planned meetings with senior Australian officials. At the same time, the visit has sparked organized opposition, with local anti-Israel groups planning protests and calling for Herzog’s arrest.
Meetings and security plans
Herzog’s itinerary includes official talks with Albanese and Governor-General Sam Mostyn, along with other figures described as coming from “across the political spectrum,” according to a statement from the Israeli president’s office. The visit is also expected to include stops with Jewish communities in Australia, with the stated aim of offering support after the Bondi Beach attack.
Australian authorities have said few details of Herzog’s schedule would be released, citing security concerns and describing that approach as customary. Police said they would deploy an “extremely large” force for a planned pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel rally in central Sydney. New South Wales authorities have also declared Herzog’s Sydney visit a “major event,” a designation that allows police to separate different groups to reduce the risk of confrontation.
Protests and calls for arrest
The visit has drawn criticism from groups opposed to Israel, including activists who have called for Herzog’s arrest over allegations related to the war in Gaza. Palestinian Action Group activists have organized a rally in central Sydney for late afternoon Monday, with organizers saying the demonstration is aimed at protesting Israel’s actions in Gaza and demanding Herzog’s arrest.
Police asked protest organizers to move the demonstration from outside the city centre’s Town Hall to a nearby park, citing concerns about the limited size of the venue, New South Wales Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Dunstan said. Organizers rejected that request, but told police they wanted a “peaceful and safe protest,” according to Dunstan.
Australia’s federal police have ruled out arresting Herzog, with senior officials telling lawmakers that Herzog had “full immunity” covering civil and criminal matters, including genocide. Albanese said people have a right to protest, but urged them to be respectful of the families of those killed in the December 14 attack.
What sources say about the Bondi attack
The Times of Israel report said the December shooting happened during a Hanukkah event at Bondi Beach and killed 15 people. It identified the alleged shooter as Sajid Akram, 50, and said he was shot and killed by police during the attack. The report described Akram as an Indian national who entered Australia on a visa in 1998.
The same report said Akram’s 24-year-old son, Naveed—an Australian-born citizen—remains in prison and has been charged with terrorism and 15 murders. Among those killed, the report said, were an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, a couple who confronted one of the gunmen, and a 10-year-old girl named Matilda, who was described at her funeral as a “ray of sunshine.”
Albanese said he and Herzog would meet with victims’ families during the visit. “I, along with President Herzog, will meet with families of those victims, those innocent lives that were stolen,” Albanese said, according to the report. He also said, “In Australia, I think people want innocent lives to be protected, whether it be Israeli or Palestinian, but they want something else as well — they don’t want conflict brought here.”
Wider political dispute
The report said the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry found last year that Herzog was liable for prosecution for inciting genocide, citing comments in which Herzog said all Palestinians—“an entire nation”—were responsible for the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack in Israel. It also said Israel “categorically” rejected the inquiry’s report, calling it “distorted and false” and urging that the body be abolished.
Israel has denied accusations of war crimes, and the report said Israel argues its military actions in Gaza are aimed at terror groups it accuses of using civilians as human shields. It also said critics have accused Albanese’s center-left Labor Party government of moving too slowly to protect Jewish Australians after a string of antisemitic incidents since the October 7, 2023 Hamas onslaught on Israel.
Reactions to Herzog’s trip have been mixed within Australia’s Jewish community, according to the report. Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said, “His visit will lift the spirits of a pained community,” the report stated. The report also said the progressive, anti-Zionist Jewish Council of Australia said Herzog was not welcome because of his alleged role in the “ongoing destruction of Gaza.”
