Ossip cross-examination draws stern criticism

The cross-examination of NSW Jewish Board of Deputies president David Ossip by lawyers for two Palestinian advocacy groups last week drew criticism from political leaders and community figures, while Commissioner Virginia Bell defended the questioning on grounds of procedural fairness.

Ossip gave evidence last Tuesday about the evening of October 9, 2023, when an anti-Israel rally moved through Sydney’s CBD to the Opera House, which he described as “a scene of international disgrace and infamy”.

The commission granted limited leave to lawyers representing the Palestine Action Group (PAG) and the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN) to put questions to him.

PAG counsel Dominic Toomey SC put to Ossip that Israeli airstrikes on Gaza had begun on the evening of October 7, 2023, questioning whether the rally could be divorced from those events.

Ossip rejected the premise: “This is a Royal Commission on antisemitism … I’m a bit confused as to why we’re getting caught up in the minutiae of the timeline of a foreign military operation.”