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The New South Wales<\/a> police commissioner has ended a restriction on protests that effectively banned marches in designated areas, now that the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, has left Australia.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, Mal Lanyon announced the restriction would cease, meaning protest organisers can once again use the form 1 system to facilitate marches with police, without the risk of being arrested in the Sydney CBD and the eastern suburbs.<\/p>\n Police were given the controversial power to restrict protests in 14-day increments for up to 90 days following a terror attack when the Minns government rushed laws through parliament<\/a> last year in the wake of the Bondi beach terror attack. The power is facing a constitutional challenge and will go before the court on Thursday.<\/p>\n The police refused to facilitate<\/a> Palestine Action Group\u2019s planned march from town hall to state parliament last week on the basis of the restriction, alongside expanded powers handed to police under the major events act for the duration of Herzog\u2019s visit. Widespread allegations of police brutality followed the rally.<\/p>\n Lanyon said the recent protests, during which officers used pepper spray and a controversial tactic known as kettling, played \u201cvery little\u201d role in the decision to end the restriction on public assemblies. But he said the powers were in place during Herzog\u2019s visit earlier this month because he had \u201csignificant concerns about the safety of the community\u201d at the time.<\/p>\n Two weeks ago, Lanyon cited Herzog\u2019s four-day visit to Australia, which ended last Thursday, as a \u201cfactor\u201d in his decision to extend the public assembly restriction declaration (Pard). He was asked on Tuesday what those other factors were but did not cite anything other than Herzog\u2019s visit.<\/p>\n Sign up: AU Breaking News email<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cCertainly the visit of a head of state, there was significant animosity towards that head of state,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a need for a police force to ensure that we provide protection to that head of state. There were also large events that were planned around the visit of that head of state. We did not want there to be conflict between protesters and the head of state.<\/p>\n \u201cWith Mr Herzog now leaving the country, I\u2019m satisfied the conditions have changed such that we can resume managing public assemblies under [the] summary act,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Last Saturday, the Minns government declared Herzog\u2019s visit a \u201cmajor event\u201d under the state\u2019s major event legislation. This handed the police sweeping powers, including additional move on and search powers in the same designated area covered by the Pard. The declaration hampers the ability of protesters to sue the state for alleged police brutality.<\/p>\n Herzog has been accused by a UN commission of inquiry, which does not speak on behalf of the UN, as having incited genocide against the Palestinian people when he said that all Gazans were responsible for the 7 October attacks against Israel. He has denied the accusation and says his words were taken out of context.<\/p>\n The Palestine Action Group challenged the major event declaration for Herzog\u2019s visit in an urgent hearing held last Monday, arguing it was a \u201cbackdoor\u201d way to curtail protests. They lost to the state, which had argued the powers were needed to secure the safety of the Israeli president and the community.<\/p>\n PAG is considering appealing against the decision. Meanwhile, lawyer Peter O\u2019Brien has vowed to challenge the designation again<\/a> as part of his client Jann Alhafny\u2019s case. Alhafny, 69, is suing the state for personal injury after she was allegedly pushed down \u201cviolently\u201d by a police officer and broke her vertebra in four places.<\/p>\n On Friday the police watchdog announced it would launch an independent inquiry<\/a> into how officers handled the protest.<\/p>\n The premier, Chris Minns, has defended the police\u2019s actions, saying the protesters created an \u201cimpossible situation<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, a member of his own government, Stephen Lawrence, said after the protest the violence was \u201cpretty much an inevitable consequence<\/a>\u201d of the Pard.<\/p>\n Lanyon was asked about the comments on Tuesday when he announced the Pard would cease. He said: \u201cI don\u2019t have an opinion on that \u2026 We tried everything we could to provide a route to the organisers that would have allowed a safe and peaceful protest.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the Pard has worked very well, but I think this is about starting to get the community back to what is normal.\u201d<\/p>\n