Portraits taken at last week’s Free Palestine rally.
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Free Palestine Rally Portraits
Julian Assange Returns to Australia
Julian Assange, founder of Wikileaks, touched down in Canberra, Ngunnawal Land, Australia, last night after being found guilty of espionage by the United States for publishing evidence of war atrocities committed by American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Assange and his supporters maintain that he pled guilty for the simple act of journalism.
Assange, flanked by his lawyers, Jennifer Robinson and Barry Pollack, and accompanied by the Australian Ambassador to the USA, Kevin Rudd and the High Commissioner to the UK, Stephen Smith, touched down at RAAF Fairbairn airbase at 7:30pm last night. He was warmly welcomed by his wife, Stella Assange and his father, John Shipton, along with a contingent of supporters who lined up at the perimeter of the airbase in freezing conditions. A large media presence was also on hand.
Assange was then whisked away to the East Hotel in Kingston, where a packed out press conference was held by Stella Assange, Jennifer Robinson and Barry Pollack.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 37
Photographs from the 37th consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally on Gadigal Land.
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USYD Encampment Officially Closes
The pro-Palestinian encampment at USYD officially closed today, after the Sydney University Muslim Association (SUMA) announced that it had won concessions from the University’s executive on divest and disclosure demands in relation to research and trade with the arms industry, particularly in Israel. The announcement came this evening after SUMA earlier held a rally that finished with several speeches in front of the Quad Lawns at USYD.
The encampment was established two months ago and was reportedly the longest continually running pro-Palestinian university encampment in the world. SUMA was the last remaining group still maintaining a presence at the encampment after other groups decamped last week under increasing pressure from the University.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 36
Photographs from the 36th consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally on Gadigal Land, Sydney, Australia.
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Eid Mubarak
Eid al-Adha falls this year on June 16th, marking celebrations after Muslims partake in Hajj — the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
This photograph was taken of a family on a day out in the late afternoon yesterday at Circular Quay.
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Portraits from the USYD Encampment
Portraits from the pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Sydney campus on Gadigal Land, Sydney, Australia.
On Friday afternoon, the University management began removing tents and belongings from the encampment as they increase pressure to close the protest site down. Orange notices were stuck on tents, warning they would be removed by Protective Service Staff. One student had their tent confiscated along with their belongings, leaving a bare patch of grass in its place.
The encampment has been maintained at USYD for the last 54 days, one of the longest running pro-Palestinian university encampments in the world protesting against the research with and investment into Israeli military industries.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 35
Thousands again turned up for the 35th consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally in Sydney, Australia, Gadigal Land.
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Free Palestine Rally - Canberra
Photographs from Saturday’s Free Palestine rally in Canberra, Kambri, Ngunnawal Land.
Around 250 people turned up to Garema Place to hear speeches from organisers from The Palestinian Action Group (Canberra), students from the ANU encampment, Amnesty International and healthcare workers.
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ANU Palestinian Encampment
Photographs from the Australian National University encampment for Palestine in Canberra, Kambri, Ngunnawal Country.
The camp was rained out the previous night as students began the long process of drying out and weatherproofing tents and bedding.
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Free Palestine National Day of Action - Port Botany
Photographs from last Saturday’s National Day of Action at Australian ports around the country, calling for a boycott, divestment and blocking of all trade with Israel as it continues its war on Gaza. It specifically called for a boycott of the Israeli run ZIM shipping line, but also more broadly of all Israeli businesses involved in the war on Gaza and the siege currently inflicted on Rafah.
Saturday’s action took place at Sydney’s Port Botany on Bidjigal and Dharawal country. Speakers included Assala Sayara (Palestine Action Group), Lizzy Jarrett (Gumbaynggirr-Bundjalung-Dunghutti activist, educator and poet), William Jarrett (poet), Natalie Wasely (Maritime Union of Australia), Senator Mehreen Faruqi (Greens), Dr Rita (Palestinian doctor), Amane Issa (NSW Teachers and School Staff for Palestine) and Paul Keating (Maritime Union of Australia).
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Emergency Rally - Rafah Massacres
Hundreds turned up to Sydney Town Hall, Gadigal Land, last night to protest against the recent massacres taking place by Israeli forces across Rafah in Gaza, Palestine.
Passionate speeches were made by Palestine Action Group organisers Jana Fayyad and Amal Naser, Wongutha-Yamatji man and actor Meyne Wyatt, Sarah Sharweesh and others.
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Sorry Day Rally
Around one hundred people turned up to NSW Parliament today to mark National Sorry Day and call for the end of child removals from Aboriginal families, which continues today, 27 years after the handing down of the ‘Bringing Them Home’ report into the Stolen Generations.
Welcome to Country was performed by Aunty Rhonda Dixon-Grovenor with speakers including representatives from Grandmothers Against Removals, Greens Senator, Mehreen Faruqi, Uncle Widdy from the Kinchela Boys Home, Dr Paul Gray from UTS’ Jumbunna Research and Lizzy Jarrett.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 33
Photographs from Sunday’s Free Palestine rally - the 33rd consecutive weekly rally of it’s kind on Gadigal Land.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 32
Photographs from yesterday’s 32nd consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally on Gadigal Land, Sydney, Australia.
Speakers included Palestine Action Group’s Jana Fayyad and Said Fayyad, high school student Christine, ex-UN Worker Rola Khalifeh, and academic and activist, Paddy Gibson.
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Al Nakba Rally
Photographs from Wednesday night’s Al Nakba rally on Gadigal Land, Sydney Town Hall, Sydney, Australia, where over 1,000 people commemorated 76 years since the establishment of the state of Israel and the resulting mass forced displacement and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their homeland in 1948. Palestinians refer to the event as ‘Al Nakba’, or ‘The Catastrophe’.
Speakers at Wednesday’s rally included organisers from the Palestinian Action Group, Jana Fayyad and Josh Lees, Wongutha-Yamatji First Nations actor and activist, Meyne Wyatt, writer, producer and Arab Theatre Studio Chair, Paula Abood, USYD encampment organiser, Shovan Bhattarai and Palestinian lawyer, Amal Naser.
The 76th anniversary of the Nakba comes as Israeli forces continue their assault on Rafah and throughout Gaza and the West Bank. In the last 10 days, 600,000 Palestinians have been displaced from Rafah, echoing the events of 1948.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 31
Photographs from Sunday’s 31st consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally on Gadigal Land, Sydney, Australia.
This week, the march route started at Belmore Park and wound it’s way through to the University of Sydney’s encampment via Broadway.
The rally, held on Mother’s Day, was dedicated to the mothers of Palestine, as Israeli forces descend into Rafah in Gaza.
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Student Strike 4 Palestine Rally
High school and university students went on strike yesterday to support the Palestinian cause, rallying at the University of Sydney and marching to the University of Technology Sydney to demand divestment in companies with ties to Israel and the war in Gaza.
Speeches were made by Jasmine Alrawi, Noura Hussain, Greens MP Mehreen Faruqi and anti-Zionist Jewish student, Rex Urquart.
On the march back to the USYD encampment, the rally broke off to occupy Broadway Shopping Centre for a brief time, bringing shoppers to a halt and disorientating police and security. After about 20 minutes, the contingent returned to the USYD encampment to finish off the rally.
The protest came as Israeli forces storm Rafah, in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are either seeking refuge, or fleeing from because of the assault.
The common refrain from students at yesterday’s rally on Gadigal Land was “Hands off Rafah!”.
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An Evening at the Pro-Palestinian Encampment at USYD
Photographs from last night at the encampment at the University of Sydney, which is protesting against the war on Palestine and the university’s connections with Israel’s military-industrial complex.
Students and supporters have been steadfastly holding camp and organising teach-ins, fundraisers, film nights and rallies, despite the unrelenting wet weather over the last few weeks.
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Free Palestine Rally - Week 30
Under constant rain, photographs of the 30th consecutive weekly Free Palestine rally on Gadigal Land.
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