Pro and anti Iranian regime rallies held in Sydney

The contrast could not have been clearer at two protests in Sydney’s CBD last Sunday.

While flags of Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran were held, and pro-regime slogans chanted, by attendees at a large pro-Palestine rally at Hyde Park, a group of several dozen Iranian-Australians – joined by several Jewish Sydneysiders – held a peaceful counter-protest in solidarity with the people of Iran and Israel.

Meanwhile, on the same day in Melbourne, pro-Palestine protesters – in vocal support of Iran’s regime – brought traffic to a standstill, as they marched 5km along St Kilda Road to the US Consulate.

At Hyde Park, police kept the two sets of protesters apart, when the counter-protest group did a brief walk-through, chanting “democracy for Iran”, and “the terrorist regime must go”.

Then they walked to Town Hall Square, displaying the flags of Israel and pre-1979 Iran, and danced to Persian music.

Daniel Taghaddos – an exiled Iranian and co-founder of the MehrEran Foundation – told The AJN on Tuesday that “when some of the pro-Palestine group abused the people of Iran by supporting the regime, we felt it was our duty to clear the Iranian people’s name, because Iranians do not support Iran’s war against Israel, and do not support the regime”.

“We want to create awareness, and break the silence being imposed on the Iranian people”.

Jewish Sydneysider Marc Rosenthal told The AJN he attended Sunday’s counter protest because “it is important to support these Iranian people, who have themselves stood by the Jewish community, and Israel”.

“I was happy to support Iranians who were standing up against the same protestors who now also march in support of [Ayatollah] Khamenei, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps”.