Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 1-Oct-24

Anti-hate symbols legislation that took effect in January make it an offence punishable by up to 12 months in jail to display symbols associated with a banned terror group such as Hezbollah. However, with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton wanting to know why no one had been arrested for carrying the Hezbollah flag at pro-Palestine protests on the weekend, the Australian Federal Police has indicated in a statement that the "mere public display of a prohibited symbol on its own does not meet the threshold of a Commonwealth offence". Deakin University counterterrorism expert Greg Barton said the display of the Hezbollah flag at the protests was the first major test for the laws, while Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni claimed the fixation on a few flags at the protests was a convenient distraction from Israel’s "massacre" in Gaza and Lebanon.

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AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, DEAKIN UNIVERSITY