“As of this morning, they further reiterated their intent on social media to carry out their intent and block the bridge,” he said.
“Our message for the protest group is to find another route.”
Pro-Palestine rallies have been held weekly in Melbourne for more than 90 minutes.Credit: Wayne Taylor
Papworth said police had “extensive intelligence” that a smaller group of protesters may cause trouble.
“If they do engage in criminal behaviour, they can expect to bedealt with by police and arrested,” he said.
“We are now asking the broader protest group – the group that we know that are there to protest peacefully and lawfully – to do the right thing for their cause, to consider their protest and to protest lawfully and peacefully because all you’ll be doing is disrupting vital emergency services.”
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The Melbourne rally organisers have urged people to “block the city for Gaza” on Sunday where protesters are expected to march from Victoria’s State Library to the King Street bridge.
“Free the people, free the land, no peace on stolen land,” an Instagram post read.
“Bring pots and pans to highlight the manufactured starvation that is causing mass casualties in Gaza. These shutdowns are in preparation for international mass strikes, sanctions and blockades to end Israeli impunity.”
The Melbourne rally comes as the Palestine Action Group lodged an application for 10,000 people to walk across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to highlight the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
On police advice, NSW Premier Chris Minns has refused to grant the group permission, saying they were not given enough time to safely organise resources for the protest.
NSW Police said the proposed gathering posed too great a risk to the public and officers.
However, organisers said there was no alternative plan and thousands of people were expected to turn out.
In a last-ditch attempt to block the protest, NSW Police this week filed a summons seeking an order to block the protest in the Supreme Court.
A court decision on the NSW protest is expected on Friday.
Students for Palestine co-convenor Jasmine Duff told Melbourne radio station 3AW that being able to walk over important landmarks “highlighted the importance and seriousness of the devastation” unfolding in Gaza.
“It’s so important in this moment, where we’re seeing mass starvation kill thousands and thousands of people in the Gaza Strip, that people in Australia are willing to raise their voices,” she said on Friday morning.
“That can mean something to people. It can galvanise people.”
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Earlier this week, Victoria’s new top cop ruled out pushing for protest permits, saying they have failed to be a game changer elsewhere.
It is the first time Victoria Police has taken a firm, public stance on the issue and could put Chief Commissioner Mike Bush on a collision course with the powerful police union and the state opposition, which have both backed such a scheme.
Melbourne has hosted more than 90 weeks of pro-Palestine rallies in the CBD, along with traffic obstructions from climate change activists.
But they have not all been peaceful. An Israeli restaurant was stormed after an anti-police rally last month, while Land Forces demonstrations caused chaos last year and led to more than 100 arrests.
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