Nannas were among thousands of people at the square at Sydney Town Hall on 9 February to protest the visit of Israeli President, Issac Herzog, to Australia. Meanwhile Herzog was addressing a dinner at the Convention Centre.
Pro-Palestine Labor members and The Greens are calling on the NSW government to have an independent inquiry into the assaults, illegal behaviour and the police response to the protest.
Nanna Quotes
“Inspiring to be with so many people with a social conscience. Great speakers and thousands of respectful, peaceful protesters. I left before the police attacked.” Nanna Louise
“My 79 year old friend got pepper sprayed. She was up the front with her Palestinian family trying to march when police sprayed into the crowd. Everyone was coughing including the cops.” Nanna Bron
“I was sitting on a bench outside the cathedral, surrounded by peaceful protesters on all sides. It became a crush, no one could move. Then the police charged the crowd, everyone panicked and tried to get away. I couldn’t get up, it wasn’t safe to move, people tripped over each other. Then the pepper spray spread through the crowd and the police shoved their way in through the crush. I tried to curl into a ball on the bench, wrapped my keffiyah round my face, and hid my face in my arms. It didn’t matter, I was blinded anyway, I could hear the crowd rush around me panicking, and the police attacking like thugs. I just stayed there not moving.
When I lifted my head after I don’t know how long, there was a guy with an Aboriginal flag being arrested in front of me. I looked left and saw huge horses. When I looked right there were more. I still couldn’t see properly, and took videos and photos through a blur.
Different police came up and threatened me – I shouted at them that I couldn’t see and to leave me alone. One told me to leave or he’d drag me away. At one point I asked one of them if this was supposed to be a democracy. I could see in his eyes he was wondering the same thing.
Later, a 69 year old women made it to the bench. She was in obvious pain. She told me she’d been knocked to the ground and trampled. The police had yanked her around with force, and her back had gone, it was so bad she had to call an ambulance.” Nanna Catherine R
“Albo’s ‘disappointment’ shows how disconnected he is to his constituents – he has to take some responsibility for inviting Herzog here in the first place. It was always going to be a pressure point! No surprise at all.” Nanna Anne M
Lord Mayor Clover Moore
“Both our state and federal governments have committed to addressing the terrible rise in Antisemitism and Islamophobia in our communities and that is most welcome. As is any effort to achieve “social cohesion”. But we should be careful not to erode civil rights or chill genuine protest in the process. That doesn’t unite us, or make us feel safe.
If we truly value inclusion and diversity we must ensure all our communities are permitted to gather – to reflect, to mourn, to voice opposition to violence and war – safely and freely.” (Facebook)
Response from MPs who where at the rally
10 February 2026
Several NSW Green MPs who were at the Sydney protest are accusing the police of escalating tensions and using excessive force. This video is 38 mins long but worth watching.
Stephen Lawrence, Labor NSW MLC, spoke on ABC Radio National Breakfast. He was at the protest.
“Anyone that was the victim of a civil wrong, so negligence or any other sort of tortious act by the police last night, won’t be able to sue the state. That’s a consequence of the major events act declaration.”
“Do you fundamentally achieve public safety by trying to repress protests by trying to prevent street processions, by creating a legal regime where there’s no independent arbitrator, or are in fact those things potentially quite dangerous to community safety.” (ABC RN Breakfast)
Greens MLC Abigail Boyd describes her experience with police. She was injured, (ABC RN Breakfast)
In the NSW parliament Sue Higginson MLC called on the Minns Government to establish an independent investigation into what happened at Monday night’s actions.
“Not just to investigate the individual incidents of harm, damage and injury to human life, excessive force, assault and illegal behaviour, but also to investigate what happened for the whole policing response and exercise to go so hellishly wrong, so shockingly wrong, so frighteningly wrong.” (HANSARD)
Protesters vowed not to be intimidated by police, with hundreds gathering outside Surry Hills Police Station a day after the protest. Greens MPs Sue Higginson, Jenny Leong and Abigail Boyd appeared alongside Palestine Action Group spokesman Josh Lees. (SBS News)
11 February 2026
Labor group voices ‘distress and disgust’ at police response to anti-Herzog protests. Labor Friends of Palestine calls for independent investigation of actions of NSW police amid ‘terrible erosion of civil liberties’ at Sydney rally. (The Guardian)