‘Cancel F-35 contracts’ to Israel: Australian activists charged over rooftop protests

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - Police in Australia have charged at least eight pro-Palestine activists, including seven women, over rooftop protests against alleged military supplies set to go to Israel.

Police in the southeastern Victoria State said the people, age 26 to 62, were charged after protesting on top of an aerospace factory in Bayswater on Monday.

The Whistleblowers, Activists and Communities Alliance (WACA) activists are facing charges of criminal, trespassing, and being disguised with unlawful intent.

“It is believed the group climbed the roof … about 6 am (1900GMT Sunday), before allegedly refusing to come down for a number of hours,” the police said.

The protesters came down from the roof of the factory after some hours.

“Officers organized a cherry picker to ensure those involved were brought to the ground safely,” said the police.

They will have their day in court on July 11.

According to the activists, they called on “workers to refuse to manufacture F-35 parts bound for Israel and for the government to cancel all weapons contracts and F-35 parts contracts to be exported for use by Israel.”

- Over 12 hours

The WACA said the protest on the roof of Rosebank Engineering lasted for over 12 hours.

“No making weapons components for the genocidal Israel regime today!” it said on X, urging an end to the arming of Israel as well as freedom for Palestine.

Donning Palestinian keffiyehs, the activists raised the flag of Palestine and chanted slogans demanding the cancellation of all weapons contracts for Israel.

“We call on Rosebank Engineering workers to refuse to be complicit in genocide… That the relevant unions embargo all weapons and weapons parts exports to Israel… That Rosebank Engineering cancel all F-35 contracts and parts to be exported for use by Israel (and) that the Australian government stop all weapons and weapons parts exports to Israel,” the activists demanded.

Australia has seen widespread protests in favor of Palestine and calls have been made to the government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to end arms supplies to Israel, which has bombarded the enclave of Gaza since last Oct. 7, killing nearly 30,000 people.

Australian weapons exports to Israel in the last five years totaled $13 million, according to the latest figures.

Last November, Greens Senator David Shoebridge told the Australian Parliament: “Few people know that Australia has one of the most secretive, unaccountable weapons export systems in the world."

Israel has launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed 30,000 and injured 69,028 with mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.