Jews reclaim Sydney Opera House

A capacity crowd of 2000 Jews “reclaimed” the Sydney Opera House Sunday, six months after an incendiary pro-Palestinian protest that made global headlines amid contested claims that demonstrators chanted “Gas the Jews”.

Sunday's event was a response to the controversial events which happened when the iconic sails of the Opera House were lit up with the colors of the Israeli flag in solidarity on October 9, less than 48 hours after the October 7 massacre.

Jews were told by police to stay away amid fears they couldn’t guarantee their safety while pro-Palestinian supporters mobbed the footsteps of the Opera House, burning Israeli flags and chanting slogans, including some attacking Jews as well as Israel.

An observer known to The Jewish Independent clearly heard the phrase "Kill the Jews" chanted in Arabic and “Fuck the Jews” in English. Some observers claimed the crowd had chanted "Gas the Jews", although a subsequent forensic audio analysis by police found that the protesters were “almost certainly” chanting "Where’s the Jews?”. 

Many Jewish people were deeply disturbed by the disregard for the Israeli victims of October 7 at the demonstration, which occurred even before Israel had responded with its invasion of Gaza.