CANBERRA, Australia: Pro-Palestine protesters scaled the roof of Australia’s Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday, unfurling banners proclaiming “Palestine will be free” and accusing Israel of war crimes, according to TV footage.
Clad in dark attire, the demonstrators displayed black banners with messages including “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a common slogan in their movement.
Using a megaphone, one protester denounced the Israeli government for alleged war crimes, a charge Israel denies. Security personnel cautioned against passing directly beneath the protest, but there was no immediate effort to remove the activists, witnesses reported.
Opposition Home Affairs spokesperson James Paterson condemned the breach of parliamentary security, calling for an investigation into the incident.
The protest coincided with ongoing international scrutiny over the Gaza conflict, which began with Hamas incursions into Israel, leading to retaliatory strikes claiming thousands of lives mostly women and children and devastating Gaza’s infrastructure.
A recent UN inquiry accused both Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes during the conflict, citing significant civilian casualties as evidence.
