Thousands of pro-Palestine protesters have marched across Australia in a show of support for the Palestinian cause.
This came days after famine was declared in Gaza for the first time. The United Nations confirmed famine in parts of the Gaza Strip, as Israel prepares for a military takeover of the entire city.
Every major Palestine organising group joined for a countrywide day of action in around 40 cities and towns. Marchers demanding sanctions and an end to Australia’s arms trade with Israel were backed by more than 250 community organisations and unions, including the Victorian Trades Hall Council, Unions NSW, Hunter Workers, Unions WA and South Coast Labour Council.
The protests began taking place from every capital city on Sunday, as well as regional areas including Shepparton, Geraldton, Coffs Harbour, Katoomba, Tathra and the Pine Gap military intelligence base, some holding pro-Palestinian protests for the first time.
In Brisbane, organisers estimated at least 50,000 people gathered for a rally they described as “historic,” with Queensland police putting the figure at 10,000.
City streets in Brisbane swelled as thousands of demonstrators gathered at Queens Garden in the city centre before following an agreed alternative route on Victoria Bridge.
Organisers said that 100,000 marched in Melbourne– a figure at odds with Victoria police’s estimate of 10,000 – while in Sydney, rally organisers put the crowd at 100,000, with New South Wales police yet to release their figure.
In Melbourne, protesters gathered at the State Library of Victoria before marching to the state’s parliament via Flinders Street Station, attracting a crowd so large participants reported struggling to access the phone network.
Protesters cheered as people waved Palestinian flags from building windows and balconies, chanting “occupation no more” and “sanction Israel now” in the 97th consecutive weekend rally in the southern capital.
In the regional Victoria city of Shepparton, hundreds of adults and children walked the streets of the CBD chanting “Free Palestine” and “Freedom for Gaza.”
On the NSW South Coast, organisers estimated that around 500 people gathered in Tathra despite the rain and wind, marching across the Mogareeka Bridge.
In Canberra, independent Senator for the ACT, David Pocock was among speakers who addressed a crowd of around 2,000 people, according to police estimates, in Civic Square.
In Sydney, author and survivor advocate Grace Tame, journalist Antoinette Lattouf and NSW Teachers Federation President Henry Rajendra addressed a gathering at Hyde Park before marching to Belmore Park, while in Hobart, lord Mayor Anna Reynolds and independent federal MP Andrew Wilkie were among those leading the crowds, estimated by organisers at around 4,000.
Largest Pro-Palestine Demonstrations In Australia’s History
Sunday’s marches were expected by organisers to be the largest pro-Palestine demonstrations in Australia’s history.
Justice for Palestine Magan-djin Spokesperson, Remah Naji told Brisbane’s crowd that it was “the biggest pro-Palestine rally that this city has ever seen.”
Naji said that the high turnout in Brisbane could be attributed to authorities banning protesters from marching across the Story Bridge.
Organisers had to pivot after a magistrate on Thursday vetoed plans by organisers to march across the bridge on community safety grounds, which Queensland police acting Assistant Commissioner, Rhys Wildman welcomed.
Greens leader, Larissa Waters, was among the protesters. She told a news agency that she estimated that it was the “biggest gathering since those against the Iraq war.”
“I think it is a real show of sentiment by ordinary people that they know our government should be doing more and they want them to be doing more.”
Larissa Waters
Also, Palestine Action Group’s Sydney Spokesman, Josh Lees stated that the movement was the “biggest it’s ever been,” with Sunday’s protests coming just weeks after a crowd estimated at between 90,000 to 300,000 marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on August 3, 2025, after a supreme court bid by NSW police to block the protest was defeated.
“That bridge march has generated so much momentum around the country. The dam has burst in terms of support for Palestine and opposition to this genocide.”
Josh Lees
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