This archive report was first published on 24 July 2021.
On July 24, 2021, thousands of protesters took to the streets in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia, to demonstrate against the country's lockdown measures.
Despite public health orders prohibiting large gatherings, the protesters marched through the cities, sparking violent clashes with police in Sydney.
Dozens of protesters were arrested in Sydney after an unauthorized march flouted the public health orders, while several confrontations with police broke out during the hours-long rally.
Officers in Sydney were pelted with pot plants and bottles of water as opponents of the city's month-long stay-at-home order took to the streets in numbers.
Thousands also crowded several streets in Melbourne after gathering outside the state parliament in the early afternoon.
The largely maskless protesters were flouting rules on non-essential travel and public gatherings, a day after authorities suggested the restrictions could remain in place until October.
A police officer wipes away paint thrown by a protester in Sydney. (AFP / Steven SAPHORE)
Organisers had dubbed the protest a 'freedom' rally and publicised it on social media pages frequently used to spread vaccine disinformation and conspiracy theories.
Attendees carried signs and banners reading 'Wake up Australia' and 'Drain the Swamp' — echoing messages seen in similar demonstrations overseas.
Helicopters buzzed above the streets of Sydney, a city of over five million people that is struggling to contain an outbreak of the Delta variant.
The state of New South Wales reported 163 new infections on July 24, 2021, to bring its total in the current outbreak to nearly 2,000.
