Violence erupts at University of Queensland pro-Palestine protest amid ‘urgent’ calls for inquiry into anti-Semitism at universities

The University of Queensland (UQ) became the subject of the latest incident on Thursday afternoon, with dozens of activists descending on its central Brisbane campus in St Lucia while lectures were ongoing.

Visuals from the scene showed the group swarming the hallway of a building brandishing Palestinian flags, banners and chanting slogans.

The demonstration is understood to have quickly turned violent after some protesters began damaging infrastructure, with one image showing a smashed glass panel after reportedly having a bollard thrown at it.

Greens federal MP Max Chandler-Mather was also involved in the fracas, according to the Courier Mail.

Thursday’s hostilities come amid a series of protests ramping up at university campuses across the country, including recent demonstrations in Sydney and Melbourne.

Shadow education minister Sarah Henderson told Sky News Australia earlier on Thursday the Coalition was pushing for an inquiry, saying the scenes unfolding at places of education had “become intolerable”.

“Of course we must strongly support free speech and academic freedom and that’s not in question,” she told AM Agenda.

“But when speech crosses the line and it becomes incitement and hate speech, and breaches university guidelines which prevent discrimination, or vilification, or intimidation or harassment, and when the universities are not upholding their own guidelines, we have a massive problem in this country .”

Melbourne’s Monash University recently confirmed it will crack down on anti-Israel harassment, both on and off campus, in the wake of a circulating social media post declaring “Zionists are not welcome” on campus.

In another incident this week, a group of pro-Palestine protesters could be seen in a video shared on X surrounding a lone demonstrator who sat on the ground with an Israeli flag draped around him.

Two security officers stood close to the students while a group of pro-Palestine protesters surrounded the young man, one yelling through a speaker which was held close to his ears.

Ms Henderson previously told Sky News police were called in to break up the group, and there was “no doubt” the Jewish student was being “vilified, harassed, intimidated”.

Separately at the University of Sydney last month, children were heard among those chanting anti-Semitic slogans like “from the river to the sea” at a pro-Palestine tent city demonstration organized by an academic and activist.

Asked if anti-Israel chants like “from the river to the sea” should be banned like Nazi salutes, Ms Henderson thought they should be prohibited, as well as the term “Intifada”.

“Calling for a global ‘Intifada’ is calling for a terrorist uprising or a terrorist attack on Jews no matter where they are around the world,” she said.

“Of course free speech and academic freedom is fundamental on university campuses, but so is the right to go about your studies peacefully to learn in an environment which is peaceful, which does not disrupt your learning and which does not subject you, as is happening to so many Jewish students, to unmitigated hate and harassment and intimidation.”

Ms Henderson said the department had not received complaints of Islamophobia on university campuses.

She took aim at the government, and said the Senate inquiry would be a “real test of leadership” for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

“We’ve seen a pretty weak and frankly pathetic Education Minister who has implicitly green lit hate speech on university campuses,” she said.

“He has really got to step up, the government has got to step up and that’s why I’m hoping we will get bipartisanship and in fact support from all Senators right across the parliament.”

The proposed inquiry, chaired by Western Australia Liberal Senator Matt O’Sullivan, will be conducted by the Senate Education and Employment References Committee.

In a statement on Thursday, Ms Henderson said the inquiry will give Jewish university students and staff a “voice” and investigate what measures or legislative changes need to be made to ensure campuses are a “safe place to learn”.

“Failure to enforce university guidelines not only creates an unsafe environment for learning but fuels hate speech, and potential violence,” she said.

“Allowing the establishment of encampments opens the floodgates to round-the-clock occupation by extremist protesters, including those who have no connection with a university.

“There must be zero tolerance for anti-Semitism. This is a level of harassment that would not be tolerated for any other group of students.”

The Coalition will move a motion to establish the inquiry in the Senate next week.