The Prime Minister is asking opponents of Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Australia to remember it comes in response to the anti-Semitic terrorist attack at Bondi.

More than a dozen MPs have vowed to join a planned peaceful march through Sydney to oppose the Israeli President’s visit

Rallies have been organised in capital cities ahead of Herzog’s visit, which starts on Monday, with police in Sydney vowing to crack down on unauthorised protest action.

Anthony Albanese said he and Herzog would meet with the families of Bondi massacre victims during the five-day tour.

“I hope that people are respectful of the fact that this is a difficult time for families, particularly in the Bondi community, from the Chabad community there,” he told a press conference in Perth on Saturday.

Herzog has also defended the tour, saying his visit is important to the Australian Jewish community reeling from the attack.

Protesters and human rights experts have called for Herzog’s invitation to be rescinded, citing his culpability in Israel’s bombardment and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza.

“We cannot allow Herzog’s propaganda tour for the State of Israel to go ahead. We cannot allow genocide to be normalised,” said the Palestine Action Group’s Josh Lees.

Herzog has previously said Palestinians bore collective blame for Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, before later clarifying his remarks.

A United Nations Human Rights Council commission of inquiry in September found the statement might reasonably have been interpreted as inciting genocide.

The NSW government has approved special event public safety arrangements to bolster the number of police deployed during  Herzog’s visit.

Anyone who fails to comply with police directions will face penalties including fines of up to $5500.

MPs urge top cop to green-light protest

Thousands of Palestine Action Group protesters plan to take to central Sydney’s streets to oppose the visit but police have vowed to crack down on unauthorised action.

Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon says the proposed rally and march route has not been authorised.

“The Palestinian Action Group proposes a rally from Town Hall through the streets of the Sydney CBD,” Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters on Saturday.

“That route is unauthorised.”

But a group of 13 MPs, including four members of the Minns government, have written to Lanyon urging him to allow the march to proceed.

“It is time for cool heads to prevail … the role of state government is to ensure community safety,” Labor backbencher and signatory to the letter Stephen Lawrence said.

“A safe, peaceful procession to parliament is achievable I believe and I call on police to truly and constructively engage with the organisers.”

Rallies have been organised in all state capitals ahead of Herzog’s five-day tour, with Sydney his first stop.

Protesters and human rights experts have called for his invitation to be rescinded, citing his culpability in Israel’s bombardment and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza.

Herzog has defended his tour, saying his visit is important to the Australian Jewish community reeling from the Bondi Beach terror attack.

“I want my visit to be a visit of goodwill,” he told Nine newspapers.

The president suggested the motivations of the protesters expected to meet his arrival on Monday were hypocritical.

“I say to all those who kept on demonstrating and will demonstrate, ‘where are you when tens of thousands of Iranian citizens are butchered?'” he said, citing the bloody 2026 crackdown on nationwide protests by Tehran.

Herzog’s arrival in Sydney has been formally declared a major event to help manage crowd safety.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said the arrangements were not a ban on protests or marches and people retained the right to lawfully express views.

However, any risk of conflict, violence or public disorder would not be tolerated.

“We cannot allow a situation where mourners and protesters come into close contact on city streets without strong police presence,”  Minns told reporters on Saturday.

“This is about keeping people safe, lowering the temperature and ensuring Sydney remains calm and orderly.”

Anyone who fails to comply with lawful police directions could face penalties, including fines of up to $5500 or exclusion from the major event area.

Asked whether increasing police powers to crack down on protesters could inflame tensions, Mr Minns said the measures were designed to prevent violence.

“During … 200 (previous) Palestinian Action Group protests, several people have been detained and arrested by NSW Police who were counter-demonstrators,” he said.

“That’s not because the NSW Police are picking one side or another but they were fearful of a clash – in this case, a clash against protesters.”

Sydney Jewish groups will receive another $1 million in support funding in the aftermath of the Bondi attack, the NSW government announced on Saturday.

—AAP