Col Blanch warns pro-Palestinian protesters to expect action if Hezbollah flags are flown in Perth

Pro-Palestinian protesters scheduled to pack Perth’s CBD on Saturday have been warned to expect swift action if a Hezbollah flag is sighted — while Mayor Basil Zempilas has said he would rather the protest not go ahead at all.

Friends of Palestine WA have called a snap protest just two days before the anniversary of the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel.

With similar rallies planned around the nation, the actions have come under intense political scrutiny, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton both saying there was no place for celebration or commemoration of dead Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

And locally Premier Roger Cook, Police Commissioner Col Blanch and City of Perth Mayor Zempilas all voiced varying concerns about the protest.

“Western Australia has not seen the same appalling protest behaviour as has been experienced in major cities on the east coast,” Premier Roger Cook said.

“While everyone is entitled to protest peacefully, my Government and WA Police have been clear that violent protests will not be tolerated, and we will take action against anyone who threatens violence against Western Australians.

“I know that WA Police will be closely monitoring the actions of protestors on Saturday and will not hesitate to act if necessary.

“Western Australia is one of the safest and most peaceful places in the world. We should all be trying to keep it that way.”

Mr Zempilas said if he had been able, he may have tried to prevent the rally from happening.

“To somehow gather on that anniversary can only be seen in one way — it is offensive, it is dismissive of what happened 12 months ago. It is not the way I would like to see people marking that anniversary,” he said.

Commissioner Blanch said if his officers sighted anyone acting unlawfully, which would include parading a Hezbollah flag, then there would be repercussions.

“If someone wants to act unlawfully, including a Hezbollah flag being unveiled, police, then do have the authority to take action. We can arrest people. We can see, seize the flags,” he said.

“What we’re listening for is hate speech, inciting speech ... that is likely to cause serious concern and offence to others, to the point where we think it’s going to result in violence or other unlawful acts.”

In a rare joint statement on Friday, the Australian Federal Police and all State forces said police were planning and preparing for upcoming protests.

“Police respect the right to peacefully protest and assemble in Australia, however, there will be no tolerance for illegal behaviour or violence on any day of the year,” the statement said.

“In Australia, there are offences that prohibit behaviour that incites or advocates violence or hatred based on race and religion, including the display of prohibited symbols in public under these circumstances.

“It is also a serious offence to counsel, promote, encourage, urge, instruct or praise terrorism.”

Vashti Fox, one of the organisers of the WA protest, said they had protested on almost all weekends for the last year — and would have marshals of their own monitoring the attendants.

“We’re encouraging people to bring signs of anti-war symbols. We’re encouraging people to bring signs supporting Palestinians,” she said.

“We’re encouraging people to bring signs that support the Lebanese population. We’re not encouraging people to bring Hezbollah flags, and certainly, if people come with those flags, we’ll be alerting them to the legal consequences.”

Next week, Students For Palestine WA will be on campus at Curtin University, to call for the college to cut ties with Israel. That followed a similar vote by UWA students this week.