Police will oppose the use of the Sydney Opera House forecourt for a massive anti-Israel protest only days after the second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attacks.
A Palestine support group has applied to hold a rally for 10,000 people on October 12 starting in Hyde Park and tracking through the inner city to the iconic building’s forecourt.
NSW Police have taken legal action in the Supreme Court to stop the gathering at the famous site, citing safety concerns about the number of people who may attend and the potential for “crowd crush”.
“We understand that this is a significant anniversary,” Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna told reporters on Friday.
“We aren’t anti-protest … it’s about public safety.
“The Opera House has its own (regulations) and engineering requirements which says that they cannot facilitate the amount of people the (organiser) has indicated are likely to attend.”
Emergency services need to be able to access the site if an incident occurs, Mr McKenna said.
“The Opera House is predominantly surrounded by water, there is only a couple of small pinch points which they can safely get people out from there,” he said.
The forecourt regularly plays host to ticketed events, such as concerts, and has a standing capacity of 6000 people.
The event would mirror a controversial, snap pro-Palestine rally on the steps of the opera house days after Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1200 people and taking hundreds more hostage.
It was held in response to the building’s sails being lit in the colours of Israel after the attack, which sparked Israel’s assault on Gaza that has left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead.
Police and the Palestinian Action Group are in negotiations about potential alternate routes that Mr McKenna said the force would be “happy to facilitate”.
These include the route used by the group during protests over the past two years and another from Hyde Park to Belmore Park.
Between 100,000 and 300,000 protesters marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in August, demanding action to save dying and starving Palestinians, after a court rejected a police application to prohibit it.
The Palestine Action Group has been contacted for comment.
