Pro-Palestine Sydney protest ends in violent crackdown, serious injury
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Amid rising criticism of Australia's role in the global arms trade, a Sydney protest against military exports to "Israel" turns violent.
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Hannah Thomas, with a bruised and swollen eye and a bloodied face, after being arrested during a protest in Belmore on Friday (X)
A pro-Palestine protest in Sydney escalated on Friday, resulting in the arrest of five individuals outside SEC Plating, an Australian company accused of supplying components used in F-35 fighter jets deployed by the Israeli military.
The demonstration was organized to denounce SEC Plating’s role in supporting "Israel's" military operations in Gaza. According to the Greens New South Wales party, the company provides plating services for parts used in the global supply chain of F-35 aircraft. The Greens stated that "Israel’s" fleet of F-35s relies on such supplies “to continue the genocide against the Palestinian people.”
Police crackdown
New South Wales Police reported that officers ordered the crowd to disperse after demonstrators attempted to block access to the facility. Five protesters were arrested on alleged charges, including disobeying police orders and attempting to flee. All were granted conditional bail and are set to appear at Bankstown Local Court on July 15.
Among those arrested was 35-year-old Hannah Thomas, a former Greens candidate and the daughter of former Malaysian attorney-general Tan Sri Tommy Thomas. Police confirmed she sustained facial injuries during the protest and was taken to Bankstown Hospital for treatment.
Australian police beat an opposition politician so badly that she might lose an eye. Hannah Thomas, who ran against Albanese in the last election, was beaten at an anti-genocide protest.
— Khalissee (@Kahlissee) June 27, 2025
She was at the protest acting as a legal observer. The protest was permitted.
She’s now… pic.twitter.com/pzAnVyFK9U
Images circulating online showed Thomas with a severely swollen and bloodied eye. Reports suggest she may face permanent vision loss in her right eye.
Some of the signage at the Sydney protest for #Gaza and #Iran today.
— Nabil Al-Nashar | نبيل النشار (@NabilAlNashar) June 29, 2025
Many were angry about Hannah Thomas’ eye injury during her arrest for protesting outside SEC Plating in Belmore. pic.twitter.com/hr0zovotyq
The Guardian reported that Thomas had joined the protest to oppose SEC Plating’s role in “electroplating and surface coating services for aerospace and defence applications,” including those used by "Israel".
The protest was allegedly “unauthorised” under New South Wales’ anti-protest laws. Thomas was said to have been arrested after allegedly refusing to comply with a move-on order.
Political reactions, legal concerns
NSW Greens lawmaker and Justice spokesperson Sue Higginson criticized the police response, labeling it “brutal and excessive.”
For the past 3mths of our 21mth rolling protest of the g-nocide in Gaza we’ve had minimal👮♂️interest. On several recent occasions there have been no👮♂️attending at all.
— Ms-Nat (@NatalieMoran20) June 28, 2025
Today, the day after their shameful assault on Hannah Thomas NSW👮♂️were out in force in The Gong.
Shame😔🤬 pic.twitter.com/FFHmXxJLhh
She questioned the legality of police actions, stating, “There is a significant question about the lawfulness of what they have done to members of the community exercising their rights of assembly this morning.”
The incident has reignited debate over the role of Australian firms in the arms trade and their links to "Israel", as well as the impact of strict protest laws on civil liberties.
