Three people have been charged and police are looking for one woman after an Israeli flag was allegedly stolen from a Sydney council on Christmas Day. A group was seen approaching the council chambers in Sydney’s eastern suburbs—home to Australia’s largest Jewish community. CCTV footage released about the theft shows a man piggybacking on a woman and reaching for the Israeli flag at Woollahra Council. The flag was allegedly stolen from a Sydney council on Christmas Day. A car parked outside the council chambers was seen bearing one large Palestinian flag and several small flags before the individuals were seen running towards the flag poles. The Woollahra Council in Sydney’s eastern suburbs has a significant Jewish population, with 14 percent of people identifying with Judaism. The police are now appealing for help to find the woman who was involved in the incident. They have also released video footage of the woman, asking for any witnesses or people with information to contact detectives at the Bondi Police Station or Crime Stoppers. The police believe that she is the key to solving the incident.
The Israeli flag was raised by the Liberal Mayor of Woollahra, Richard Shields, at the Council chambers, following the attack on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7. Council condemned the “abhorrent and unprecedented” attack on Israel and expressed support for the country’s right to defend itself. On the flip side, the Canterbury-Bankstown Council recently voted to fly the Palestinian flag at the Campsie administration building and in a local community park in Bankstown in support of a motion by Councillor Karl Saleh from the Australian Labor Party. The local council in Sydney’s southwest also voted to dedicate a space at a local park for the community to lay wreaths and flowers. Meanwhile, Randwick Council in Sydney’s east has canned plans to fly the Palestinian flag at the top of the local town hall. Councillor Daniel Rosenfeld from the Liberal Party opposes this action.
Sydney has been home to a large number of pro-Palestinian rallies and multiple pro-Israeli gatherings. Images emerged of the Israeli flag being stomped on in front of the Opera House soon after Israel declared war on Hamas. New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said at the time he was “horrified” by the protest and called it “the wrong thing to do.”