Protesters gather ahead of march on weapons expo in Melbourne

The city’s hosting of the Land Forces Defence Expo has seen people marching in the street since Saturday, with extra police resources diverted.

Officers have even been brought in from New South Wales.

Today, on the first day of the expo, authorities are expecting up to 25,000 anti-war protesters to converge on the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

It’s expected to be the city’s largest protest in decades.

Nearly 1800 police are expected to be deployed to meet them, equipped with special search and arrest powers.

Yesterday, state treasurer Tim Pallas said the cost of the week-long police operation would be about $15 million.

And Premier Jacinta Allan said there was “no room” for “disruptive” behaviour.

The expo was organised before Israel’s invasion of Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attacks last year, but the war appears a major factor in the protests, with many attendees waving Palestinian flags.

“We want Australia to not be complicit because it is actually against international law to be supplying weapons to Israel,” protest organiser Nathalie Farah said.

Greens MP Gabrielle de Vietri also announced she would attend the protest today, saying the convention should “have never been happening in the first place”.

Police and protesters are expected to be on the scene from about 6am.