After US, campus protests hit Australia; anti & pro-Israel protesters face off at Sydney University

Hundreds of supporters of Israel and Gaza faced off at a Sydney university Friday, bringing echoes of US college protests and Middle East tumult to campus and continent on the other side of the world. Rival demonstrators came eye-to-eye shouting slogans and waving flags. Still, except for a few heated exchanges, the protest and counterprotest passed off peacefully. Similar to their US counterparts, the protesters want to see Sydney University cut ties with Israeli institutions and reject funding from arms companies. But like the United States, allegations of extremism have been levelled at Sydney’s pro-Palestinian protesters.