Melbourne woman files charges against Isaac Herzog
Israeli president accused of breaking Australian laws prohibiting genocide and crimes against humanity
Note: this story has been amended to correctly list Tasnim Sammak’s place of employment as Victoria University, rather than Monash University as originally stated.
A Victorian woman of Palestinian descent who lost 162 members of her family in the Gaza genocide has formally filed charges against Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
The charge sheet, filed with the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria on Wednesday and seen by Deepcut, accuses Herzog of eight breaches of Commonwealth and state law, including committing and inciting genocide, extermination, and four war crimes:
excessive death, injury or damage;
the treacherous killing or injuring of civilians;
attacks against “towns, villages, dwellings, hospitals, and buildings which were undefended”; and
inhumane treatment.
The charges were filed by Dr. Tasnim Mahmoud Sammak, an academic at Victoria University.
“My family have been refugees in Gaza since 1967,” Sammak said. “Over a dozen of my relatives were murdered when the Israeli army bombarded the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. They were sheltering at home and in a school. Four women of my family were killed together in one room.
“My grandma, who is in her seventies, survived the Nakba. She is devastated; her sister’s children were killed during the Gaza genocide. Our surviving family is trying to rebuild their demolished homes, and they have no avenue to seek asylum.”
We call a genocide a genocide because we don’t take corporate money. We rely on our readers.
Herzog flew into Sydney on Monday at the invitation of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, prompting large rallies around the country and calls for the government to arrest Herzog.
In September, a UN Commission of Inquiry found that Herzog incited genocide in October 2023 when he claimed that “an entire nation out there [in Gaza]... is responsible” for the October 7 attack on Israel.
That statement forms the basis of one of the eight charges filed against Herzog on Wednesday, with Sammak alleging Herzog breached Victoria’s Crimes Act by engaging in “conduct that is likely to incite hatred against, serious contempt for, revulsion towards or severe ridicule of... persons of Palestinian descent”.
Herzog touches down in Melbourne
The court filing came a day after NSW police set upon peaceful protesters opposed to Herzog’s visit to Sydney. Widely circulated footage showed officers throwing punches, forcibly breaking up a Muslim prayer congregation, using pepper spray and charging into crowds en masse.
More than 150 Muslim community organisations issued a joint statement on Tuesday demanding an independent inquiry into police violence at the rally, a public apology from NSW Premier Chris Minns and Police Minister Yasmin Catley, and the resignation of NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon.
Herzog will arrive in Melbourne today, with Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan disregarding warnings from the Victorian Greens that his presence in the city “is likely to spark heightened community distress, increased police violence, the erosion of democratic rights and diminishing trust in the government”.
While Sammak’s charges have not yet been authorised by the court, Sammak’s legal representative, Marco Man, cited “an abundance of evidence” to sustain them.
“No one is above the law, and in particular, heads of state that spread hate and promote genocide,” Man said.
“The Australian public demands action, and the state should enforce the rule of law as they do for everyday citizens.
“We say that Herzog is not immune to prosecution while he is in Australia. The rule of law persists.”
Got a tip? Email tips@deepcutnews.com or send an anonymous Signal to @deepcut.25.
Wonderful news to wake up to this morning!
Go Sis ☝🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾♥️♥️♥️charge the coloniser