A rally on Invasion Day was abruptly halted due to a bomb scare when a man allegedly tossed an item into the assembled crowd.
Witnesses reported that a glass object was thrown into the gathering at Forrest Place in Perth’s central business district on Monday.
“Individuals on the higher level on the eastern side of Forrest Place saw a man throw something towards the stage,” stated Police Commissioner Col Blanch.
“Police acted promptly, arresting the individual responsible. The man suggested that the object might contain explosives,” Blanch added.
This incident occurred approximately 30 minutes after the rally commenced at noon.
The suspect, a 31-year-old from Warwick in northern Perth, faces charges related to endangering life, health, or safety with intent, as well as charges concerning the making or possession of explosives. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.
‘The device that was located just in front of the stage area contained ball bearings, contained screws and those items were wrapped around an unknown-at-this-stage liquid in a glass container,’ Police Commissioner Blanch said.
The incident occurred during speeches from Aboriginal leaders at the peaceful gathering, with organisers using microphones to suddenly usher attendees away.
A man was taken into custody after an Invasion Day rally was evacuated over fears of a bomb
Police said a device was thrown around 30 minutes after the rally had kicked off at 12pm
‘I don’t want to make a panic. Just move that way slowly,’ one organiser said, ABC News reports.
‘Because they reckon someone planted a bomb. Walk that way now. Now.’
A member of the crowd, Lilli O’Flyn, said she and a friend quickly left after the warning ‘because when you don’t know, you go to worst-case scenario’.
‘No-one really told us what was going on, and it was kind of stressful,’ she told the ABC.
‘But just because no-one was communicating with us, we didn’t really know what to do.’
WA Premier Roger Cook said on Monday that the incident was ‘completely unacceptable’, both in the state and across Australia.
‘Whatever the motivations for this, we must remember what this day marks. This Australia Day should be one of unity, not division,’ he said in a statement.
‘That a peaceful protest was targeted in this fashion runs against the very heart of what it means to be Australian.
One attendee said it was a stressful situation, and ‘no one knew what was going on’
Invasion Day protesters used Monday to call for better recognition of Australia’s first peoples (pictured in Melbourne on Monday)
‘Now more than ever, it is important we treat each other’s views with respect. That is what inclusivity is all about. We can’t let hate win.’
While Invasion Day protesters used Monday to call for better recognition of Australia’s first peoples, large anti-immigration rallies were also staged under the banner ‘March for Australia’.
One man who attended a rally in Sydney is facing charges of publicly inciting racial hatred, accused of spewing neo-Nazi talking points at a demonstration in Surry Hills.
‘We will allege that the language he used, his presence, was clearly and unequivocally assigned with neo-Nazi ideology,’ NSW Police assistant commissioner Brett McFadden told reporters.
Police were out in force elsewhere around the nation, protecting against potential clashes between the March for Australia and Invasion Day groups.
In Melbourne, the two demonstrations snaked through the city only streets apart, with each ending where the other began.
‘Please, do not engage,’ was the advice Gunnai and Gunditjmara activist Meriki Onus gave Invasion Day protesters ahead of potential run-ins.
Among those who addressed the Invasion Day rally was Millie Ingram, who read a statement on behalf of Uncle Mark Brown, a Burunong Elder.
Invasion Day attendees were encouraged by organisers not to engage with March for Australia protesters also marching through Melbourne (pictured, Invasion Day rally in Melbourne)
Pauline Hanson spoked at the March for Australia in Brisbane
Mr Brown’s Welcome to Country at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance was heckled by neo-Nazis on Anzac Day in 2025.
Protesters then marched chanting ‘Always was, always will be’ and ‘What do we want? Land rights. When do we want them? Now.’
The largely peaceful Invasion Day march concluded near Flinders Street Station, where the March for Australia rally had begun earlier in the day.
At that protest, chants of ‘deportation’ and ‘send them back’ were heard as attendees waved Australian flags and carried signs supporting Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party.
As the group moved towards the steps of parliament, loud boos erupted as protesters passed the Immigration Museum.
Riot and mounted police lined the streets, guiding demonstrators, including neo-Nazi members dressed in plain clothes.
Police were quick to break up a clash after a man was seen attempting to burn the Australian flag, prompting another man to step in and hurl abuse.
Victoria Police said it was investigating three assaults believed connected to the rallies, including a couple having their car attacked with a broken boom gate while being racially abused by four men, with one performing Nazi salutes during the ordeal.
In Melbourne, riot and mounted police lined the streets, guiding March for Australia demonstrators, including neo-Nazi members dressed in plain clothes
Similar protests were held across all capital cities, including in Brisbane, where Senator Hanson took to the stage.
‘I’ve never felt so honoured and proud as I am to be here today,’ she said to an enthusiastic crowd.
‘Thank you for flying the Australian flag and showing pride in our country.’
In Sydney, March for Australia protesters shouted chants of ‘Aussie, Aussie, Aussie – oi, oi, oi’ amid a heavy police presence.
Protesters were draped in Australian flags while some held signs reading ‘Free Joel Davis’, referring to a neo-Nazi on remand for allegedly harassing a federal MP.
An Invasion Day protest earlier kicked off in Hyde Park, opening with a minute’s silence and a tribute to the victims of the recent Lake Cargelligo shooting.
Palestinian flags and keffiyehs were visible among Indigenous flags and placards.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said he was hopeful the protests would proceed peacefully, adding there would be ‘no tolerance for violence or hate speech on Sydney’s streets.’
