VIDEO: Herzog visits Bondi amid calls in Australia for arrest over Gaza “genocide” incitement

• 'Israeli' President Isaac Herzog visits Bondi Beach memorial for Hanukkah attack victims.
• Pro-Palestinian groups demand his arrest, citing UN findings of incitement to genocide in Gaza.

'Israeli' President Isaac Herzog began his visit to Australia on Monday by paying tribute at the Bondi Beach memorial, honoring the fifteen people killed in the Hanukkah shooting attack. He met with survivors and the families of the victims, laying a wreath at the site.

Speaking at the memorial, Herzog said, “This was also an attack on all Australians. It targeted the values upheld by our democracies, human life, religious freedom, tolerance, dignity, and respect.”

Opposition within Australia

Herzog’s visit, extended at the invitation of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, faced opposition even within the Jewish community. The Australian Jewish Council, critical of the 'Israeli' government, published an open letter signed by over a thousand academics and prominent Jewish figures urging Albanese to cancel Herzog’s visit.

Protests and calls for arrest

Pro-Palestinian groups have organized protests across major Australian cities. The Palestinian Action Network called for a national day of protest demanding Herzog’s arrest and investigation, citing a UN inquiry that concluded he “incited genocide in Gaza.”

The group also filed a lawsuit in Sydney against restrictions on expected demonstrations.

Authorities in Sydney described the visit as a “significant event,” deploying around three thousand police officers and granting them rare powers, including dispersing crowds, restricting access to certain areas, ordering people to leave, and searching vehicles. Police urged demonstrators to gather in a central park for safety, but organizers insisted on protesting at the historic City Hall building.

Tense relations

Following the Bondi attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Gaza, blamed the Australian government’s alleged “leniency toward rising antisemitism” for the attack. He claimed that previous Australian policies rewarding Palestinian state initiatives fueled hostility toward Australian Jews.

War crime allegations

A 2025 independent UN-appointed inquiry concluded that ‘Israel’ committed acts amounting to genocide in Gaza during the ongoing conflict. The report said Herzog and other Israeli leaders “incited genocide” in the Palestinian territory, a claim Israel has strongly rejected as “biased and false.”

The Australian Federal Police have provided Herzog with “full immunity” for the duration of his four-day visit.