Sydney beach race riot spreads 

12-11-2005

Twenty-five people were injured and 16 were arrested as race riots on a Sydney beach spread overnight to several suburbs, police said.

Islamic and political leaders condemned the violence, which was launched by mobs of youths who attacked people of Middle Eastern appearance on Cronulla beach in south Sydney on Sunday.

More than 5,000 people gathered at the beach after email and mobile phone messages called on local residents to beat-up "Lebs and wogs" -- racial slurs for people of Lebanese and Middle Eastern origin.

The move followed assaults a week ago on two volunteer lifeguards at the beach, which is a popular gathering place for Muslims from inner-city suburbs, and allegations that local women were being harassed.

Chanting "No more Lebs" and "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie ... Oi, Oi, Oi", mobs of drunken young men waving Australian flags attacked anyone suspected of having a Middle Eastern background.

One Muslim woman had her headscarf ripped off and another was chased into a beach kiosk, local media reported.

Six police officers were injured as they tried to quell the violence, and two ambulance officers were also hurt.

Later, a gang of some 60 men reportedly of Middle Eastern appearance launched a series of apparent revenge attacks in nearby suburbs, smashing more than 40 cars with baseball bats and stabbing two youths.

New South Wales state premier Morris Iemma described the violence at Cronulla beach as "stomach turning".

"I saw yesterday people trying to hide behind the Australian flag; well they are cowards whose behaviour will not be tolerated," Iemma told Channel Nine television.

Iemma said he planned to bring together community leaders for discussions about how to prevent further violence.

Police Commissioner Ken Moroney said he was disgusted by the violence.

"It's not Australian to adopt a mob mentality and then amongst other things assault women -- I have never in all my life known of anything that's so un-Australian," he said.

The president of the Islamic Friendship Association of Australia, Keysar Trad, called on the police to "use the full extent of the law on these criminal thugs who behaved in the way that they did".

The director of the Forum on Australia's Islamic Relations, Kuranda Seyit, said in a statement: "We have over 3,000 kilometres of beaches on the east coast, there's plenty of sand and ocean there for everyone.

"What happened to the Australian idea of a fair go and tolerance?"