Police in the Australian state of Victoria have made a series of arrests as part of the growing attack on the democratic rights of protesters demonstrating against the Israeli imperialist-backed genocide in Gaza.

Twelve other people were arrested in connection with the September 11 protest against the International Land Defense Exhibition in Melbourne, the state capital. This is in addition to 89 people who were charged or fined that day.

The exhibition brought together government officials and the world’s largest arms manufacturers. The protesters were highlighting the central role of the conference as a hub for planning war crimes carried out by Israel and its sponsors in major capitalist centers, including the United States and Australia.

These clearly anti-war and humanitarian sentiments were masked by the political and media establishment which attempted to portray the protesters as a hysterical and dangerous mob.

Some 1,800 police officers were mobilized for this event in which only a few thousand demonstrators participated. The Public Order Intervention Team (PORT), effectively the riot squad, used “flashbang” stun grenades, fired “foam” rubber bullets and indiscriminately deployed tear gas against entire groups of protesters, including those moving away from police or at a distance that posed a risk. no risk for the police.

However, Victoria Police say it was the police officers who were violently attacked.

Like the World Socialist Website explained, the police mobilization, coordinated by the state and federal Labor governments, was a clear provocation intended to create an atmosphere in which protesters could be characterized as violent.

Since the event, the arrested protesters have been charged with offenses including “fighting” and “obstructing/obstructing police.” A protester was accused of “animal abuse” for attacking a police officer on horseback. Of course, it was not the protesters who knowingly rode their horses into the whirlwind of a demonstration against which the police were clearly prepared to use force.

The arrest of protester Jasmine Duff at her home last month was caught on video. Duff is a member of the Socialist Alternative organization.