Tens of thousands of Australians joined pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel rallies on Sunday, amid increasingly tense ties between Canberra and Jerusalem, with demonstrators calling for an end to the war in Gaza and sanctions on Israel.

Recent weeks have seen strained relations between Israel and Australia following the center-left government’s decision to recognize a Palestinian state and the revocation of an entry visa for Israeli far-right MK Simcha Rothman.

More than 40 protests took place across Australia on Sunday, Palestine Action Group said, including large turnouts in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. The group said around 350,000 attended the rallies nationwide, including around 50,000 in Brisbane, though police estimated the numbers there at closer to 10,000. Police did not have estimates for crowd sizes in Sydney and Melbourne.

In Sydney, organizer Josh Lees said Australians were out in force to “demand an end to this genocide in Gaza and to demand that our government sanction Israel” as rallygoers, many with Palestinian flags,........

© The Times of Israel