Charges & Bail Conditions Issued During Herzog’s Sydney Visit Walked Back

The charges and bail conditions of two people arrested during Israeli president Isaac Herzog’s Sydney visit have been walked back.

A judge overturned the bail conditions of a protester from the Town Hall anti-Herzog rallies, ruling it wasn’t “reasonable” for someone with no criminal history to be subject to such restrictions.

As per The Guardian, lawyer Wael Skaf applied before the Downing Centre local court to vary protester Siena Hopper’s bail conditions, which prohibited her from entering the City of Sydney for any reason other than to attend court or work, and barred he from attending “unlawful protests”.

Hopper is one of the 26 people changed in relation to the Town Hall protest opposing Israeli president Isaac Herzog’s Australian visit, with alleged police brutality on the night to be investigated by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC).

The 25-year-old has pleaded not guilty to one count of assaulting a police officer.

A police prosecutor arguing against the change of bail conditions said Hopper could “endanger the safety of other community members” and proposing instead that she be allowed to enter the City unless it was for a protest.

“I don’t find this a very useful condition of bail,” said Deputy chief judge Michael Antrum. “[It’s] a redundant provision because that would be a breach of bail in any event.

“There is, in my view, no reason to exclude her from the City of Sydney local government area. I don’t consider those conditions were reasonable, in my view.”

Hopper is one of many protester whose bail conditions barred them from entering the City of Sydney, with several also succeeding to overturn the restrictions.

Stalking charges cleared, but intimidation upheld

It comes as another man arrested during Herzog’s visit has been cleared of stalking the Israeli president.

45-year-old Rajab Ali was arrested in February and charged with stalk or intimidate intending to cause fear of physical harm, with police alleging he had been driving in Haymarket when he pulled his car over to film Herzog on his phone and shout offensive language.

Although the charge was dropped on Wednesday, Ali plead guilty to a seperate charge relating to the intimidation of a security guard outside of a Jewish kindergarten.

As per the ABC, the court heard Ali was live-streaming on social media when he drove past a Jewish kindergarten, before circling back and filming a security guard stationed outside. He reportedly called him a “gronk and dog”, and escaped before police could arrive.

Ali’s solicitor Mohamed Al-Fadhli told the court that while his client’s actions were “compulsive and situational”, he had not been aware the school had been Jewish, with his remarks  “not directed at the nature of the premises”.

Ali had been taken into custody after a court appearance in March following a detention application, with the judge noting his stay of more than 30 days in Parklea Correctional Centre in his ruling.

Ali was sentenced to an 18-month community corrections order with a conviction recorded. He will be subject to a good behaviour bond and cannot come within 100 metres of the school.

The court heard the the defendant’s traffic record encompassed too many pages to print, with Ali also pleading guilty to one count of using his phone while driving, and fined $800.