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Previously unseen vision shows the moment when an angry protest morphed into a chaotic clash in the centre of Sydney, and prompted accusations of violence against police and protesters.
The Herald has obtained footage showing the moment a young man at last month’s protest against the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog sends a shaken Coca-Cola bottle into the crowd outside Town Hall, sparking confusion and a significant police response.
NSW Premier Chris Minns and NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon have repeatedly defended the actions of police against accusations of heavy-handedness after vision showing police punching, pepper-spraying and arresting protesters went viral. Minns will not give a public apology to a group of Muslim protesters who were dispersed by police officers while in the middle of evening prayer.
“Context is important here, and the circumstances facing NSW Police were incredibly difficult,” he has said. “It was, in effect, in the middle of a riot.”
The Herald can reveal some of that context via newly obtained CCTV footage that shows the action that appears to have triggered the chaos, as well as the moments leading up to the prayer group’s treatment.
This masthead viewed more than 10 hours of footage from five different council-operated cameras, footage from which is expected to form part of the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission’s investigation into police conduct on the night. The vision has been blurred to protect the privacy of individuals as a condition of publication.
The moment that sparked a ‘riot’
A young man dressed in a green polo shirt stands on the corner of Druitt and George streets, just steps away from a group of more than a dozen officers.
This is where police had earlier held a line, blocking protesters from leaving or entering the Town Hall precinct amid chants of “let us march”. By 6.30pm, officers had moved barricades out of the way, and foot traffic was flowing relatively freely.
At 6.55pm, the young man holds a 1.25-litre bottle of Coke Zero, which he starts shaking in his hand. Two CCTV cameras on the intersection capture him shaking the soft drink for five minutes, unnoticed by those around him.
At 7pm, as more protesters are funnelling out of George Street, he cracks the lid and kicks the fizzing bottle into the intersection. He turns to leave quickly, but he lands in the arms of a group of about 10 officers who pounce, holding him against a wall.
As police swarm, a CCTV camera on Park Street captures a few individuals in pink vests who appear to be legal observers running over to where the arrest is taking place; news photographers and television camera crews rush in to capture the drama.
As the young man is taken away and bailed into a waiting police car, protesters continue to flow out of Town Hall, some chanting, others trying to disperse. Police officers close in: they establish a line where moments before they had been allowing people through, instead pushing them back towards George Street.
By 7.05pm, five minutes after the Coke bottle incident, it’s pure chaos. Protesters push against the barricades, pointing in police officers’ faces. Officers struggle to hold the line, and the mounted unit moves in.
A police officer on a loudspeaker declares that area of George Street is now closed under the Major Events Act, and warns anyone who tries to march will be arrested.
What happens next has been well documented by witness accounts on social media, and by this masthead. Police deploy pepper spray, physically push protesters back, and make more than 20 arrests.
At least two protesters are punched by police – one after allegedly biting the hand of the arresting officer. Protesters claimed after the protest that the crowd was boxed in and unable to leave.
Additional CCTV footage witnessed by this masthead showed that while a police line was in place on the corner of Bathurst and George streets, some protesters were able to leave towards Hyde Park. After the speeches in the square concluded and the police held the line at Druitt Street, some parts of the crowd were able to leave in the opposite direction, if already on the outskirts of the crowd.
Another CCTV angle seen by the Herald shows police running at speed at protesters twice after 8pm, rushing them towards Hyde Park. Some officers were doubled over, affected by pepper spray.
The moments before Muslims are dragged out of prayer
By about 8pm, the majority of protesters have either left or been pushed by police lines back down George and Bathurst streets.
CCTV footage shows some members of the crowd gathered in a corner of Sydney Square, the furthest from the chaos of George Street. A police line is sweeping through, rounding up the stragglers and forcing them further into the square.
Some Muslim protesters start making arrangements for their evening prayers, one of the five essential daily prayers.
The police line appears to pause for a few moments, and in those seconds a prayer group forms, led by Sheikh Wesam Charkawi.
The police line moves forward, pushing the remaining protesters towards the group. By this point, lawyer and former police officer Mahmud Hawila has reached an agreement with acting superintendent David El-Badawi to allow the group to pray in peace.
That directive does not make its way to the rest of the officers.
As the prayer group faces the back of the square, dozens of police officers hold a line behind them, and the hundred or so remaining protesters are pushed in their direction, surrounding the praying group.
What happens next has been captured in mobile phone footage. Officers grab those praying, lifting them mid-prayer. One man is seen in mobile footage being dragged and falling to the ground.
Police Minister Yasmin Catley said the worshippers were caught up in a “riot” when questioned about the incident in a budget estimates hearing last month.
“Absolutely, the atmosphere around that looked very chaotic and violent. I am very sorry that innocent people got caught up in that,” she said.
Hawila says there was no riot in the square. The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission is investigating the actions of police throughout the protest.
“Because of the hurt felt by worshippers on the night – both physically and emotionally – and because of the flow-on effect it had on the community who witnessed it through viral videos, a public inquiry is needed to begin the healing process between the community and police, because right now, it’s the worst it’s ever been,” Hawila said.
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