Dozens of people protesting the decision not to prosecute soldiers involved in Israel’s attacks in Gaza demonstrated outside the Israeli Embassy in Canberra on Tuesday.
The demonstrators carried photographs of Palestinians who had died in Gaza and chanted slogans calling for the Israeli ambassador to be expelled and Palestine to be free. Protesters blocked the embassy entrance for a while before police moved them away from the roadway.
Attack on an aid convoy in Gaza
Zomi Frankcom and six people working for World Central Kitchen were killed on April 1, 2024, in Israeli drone strikes on three clearly marked vehicles belonging to a humanitarian aid convoy in central Gaza. Frankcom was 43 years old.
Colonel Nochi Mendel, the Israeli commander who approved the attack, defended his decision in an interview published last week. Mendel said, “I am not sorry for what I did.”
Karuna Bajracharya, a friend of Frankcom who attended the protest, described Mendel’s remarks as “disgusting.”
Call for sanctions in Australia
Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi called for sanctions, arguing that the Australian government had failed to hold Israel accountable. Addressing the protesters, Faruqi said sanctions should be imposed on Israel and should have been imposed much earlier.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said last month that she was angry about Israel’s decision not to prosecute. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also said Israel had fallen short of the standard of accountability Australia expected.