The Australian government has avoided responding to calls for the arrest of Israeli President Isaac Herzog during his upcoming visit to the country, scheduled to begin next Monday and last four days, to offer condolences to the victims of the mass shooting incident that targeted the 'Hanukkah' festival at Bondi Beach in Sydney last December, which resulted in the deaths of 15 people.
This visit comes amidst widespread human rights controversy, as a United Nations committee reported in 2025 that Herzog 'incited genocide' through statements in which he considered Palestinians an 'entire nation' responsible for the October 7 attacks, which Israel categorically rejected, describing the report as 'false and misleading'.
For his part, human rights lawyer and member of the UN investigative committee, Chris Sidoti, called on Australian authorities to arrest Herzog upon his arrival, considering Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's invitation to him a 'ridiculous mistake' that should be retracted, while emphasizing the necessity of legal accountability based on international reports.
In an official response, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong clarified that the invitation came in response to the wishes of the Australian Jewish community, and aims to honor the victims of the Bondi attack and provide support to the community in the face of what she described as the 'worst antisemitic attack' witnessed on Australian soil.
Concurrently, activists supporting the Palestinian cause announced widespread protests across Australia rejecting the visit, while Sydney police refused to grant permits for demonstrations based on new security powers, and federal police revealed that charges had been laid against a young man who threatened to kill a foreign head of state online.
Sources reported that security measures have been unprecedentedly tightened around the sites the Israeli president will visit, amidst a sharp political and public division over the implications of this visit for Australia's international human rights obligations.
He must be arrested if he comes... The decision to invite him was wrong and should be canceled before it's too late.
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Australia Ignores Calls to Arrest Israeli President During His Upcoming Visit