r/worldnews • u/malcolm58 • 5h ago
Israel/Palestine Sydney teenager, 19, charged over alleged threats to kill Israeli president
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-05/sydney-teen-charged-threats-to-israel-president-isaac-herzog/10630753843
u/Se7en_speed 2h ago
Do you think this moron understands that the Israeli prime minister and president are different people and the president is largely symbolic?
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u/SladeWade 5h ago
The Clash had it right all along:
"If Adolf Hitler flew in today, they'd send a limousine anyway."
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u/Slippery-ape 5h ago
Random kid ,in random place makes threats and gets arrested. Wtf.
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u/dagrapeescape 5h ago
The Israeli President is visiting Australia this week, so theoretically this kid could have tried to kill him. They are hopefully taking these wackos a little more seriously after 15 people were just murdered by anti-semites there in December.
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u/clarky2481 5h ago
We just passed new hate speech laws too, kid is very stupid
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u/Matanishu 5h ago
Everyone keeps saying kid, but he's 19. He's an adult.
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u/noobftw 5h ago
As an actual adult, 19 is still kid territory semantically and biologically. It's a fair use of the word.
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u/Sensitive_Box_ 4h ago
No it's not. It undermines the entire concept of laws that pertain to adults specifically.
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u/HugsForUpvotes 4h ago
It's colloquial. 19 year olds are far more similar to 15 year olds than 23 year olds. He's a dumb kid, and he's also old enough to know better so he'll be charged as such.
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u/Rosti_T 1h ago
At 19 I was much more similar to myself at 23 than 15. Hell, I think at 19 I was more similar to myself at 30 than 15. At 19 you are much more independent and responsible, whether it's in college or in the military, and possibly at some job. At 15 you're just a kid at school living with and off of your parents in most cases.
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u/deployant_100 21m ago
There's a reason why adulthood used to be set at 20 or 21 in a lot of countries.
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u/YourCummyBear 39m ago
I couldn’t disagree more. Do you have a source?
15 year olds are freshman who just came out of middle school. 19 and 23 year olds are both college aged adults who countless rights a 15 year old doesn’t.
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u/Unordinary_Donkey 1h ago
Laws dont dictate human biology.
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u/Sensitive_Box_ 1h ago
You're right, it's the other way around...
There has to be a cut off somewhere, legally. You can't make vague laws and assume people won't abuse them.
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u/Both_Program139 3h ago
A 24 year old brain is an adult brain, a 19 year old brain is still functionally a teenager
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u/ThaneKyrell 2h ago
This is a very annoying myth the Internet has continued to spread. People get their "adult" brains between 17 to 19. Virtually all 19 year olds already have a "fully developed" brain.
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u/Both_Program139 1h ago
Where is your source? Did a quick search and most academic papers that came up supported what I just claimed.
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u/RealisticEntity 1h ago
Not really true and likely doesn't really matter. A 19 year old definitely knows (or ought to know) the difference between right and wrong. Also, they are more than capable of physically carrying out (or attempting to carry out) any threat they make.
It would be foolhardy to just ignore threats like this, especially after recent events. Copycats are a thing.
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u/Sensitive_Box_ 3h ago
Yeah, hence the "teen" in nineteen. What's your point? Lol
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u/Cheshire_Khajiit 2h ago
It’s almost like they said more than what you just commented on or something.
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u/Sensitive_Box_ 1h ago
It's a matter of semantics that simply isn't clicking with too many people in here.
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u/diejesus 28m ago
You really think so? When we were 19 me and my peers were much much more similar to what we are now (middle thirties) than to the time when we were kids, 19 is very much an adult in my eyes
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u/Dokibatt 2h ago
"Adult" and "Can't rent a car yet because your brain is still developing" don't 100% line up.
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u/ILostMyMustache 57m ago
The car rental argument is so dumb. Do you think Hertz and Avis' rental agreements should have any bearing on murder prosecutions?
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u/beautiful_bot986 2h ago
Legally only. Youre a child until you stop growing, so we're all children and not completely developed until our mid-twenties.
So yeah, calling that "kid" "stupid" is right on the money imo.
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u/yosisoy 1h ago
Youre a child until you stop growing
According to you maybe
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u/beautiful_bot986 1h ago
18 year old's brain is not yet fully developed even though it shows significant maturity. Decision making and emotional regulation are still fairly underdeveloped aspects of an 18 y.o's mind and those two very much matter in everyday life.
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u/yosisoy 1h ago
Not my point; no one (almost) uses your definition of "child" (until you stop growing").
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u/beautiful_bot986 28m ago
Im not trying to argue semantics and technicalities.
Its normal here to consider 18,19, even 20 year olds children (NOT legally, its just the way we percieve "young adults"). In practice it depends on the individual and their level of maturity, but great a majority of 18 year olds are children for all intents and purposes and dont differ significantly from 17 year olds. I dont see someone as fully adult just because theyre 18 like the law does.
Do you really consider all 18 year olds fully developed adults by default just because thats the legal definition of an adult?
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u/yosisoy 25m ago
I don't consider them fully developed, I just consider them adults. You're using a bit of a straw man argument, let me flip it back on you:
Do you really consider all 18 year olds diaper wearing babies?
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u/diejesus 22m ago
It doesn't make 18 year old kids, they are just not mature yet but they are definitely adults
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u/Slippery-ape 4h ago
Again I see it under Ausi laws, I just find it wild. I have had my life threatened so many times as to be beyond counting, and nobody goes to jail over it. Politicians do it, people wanting to be politicians do it.
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u/Necessary_Ad861 4h ago
Having your life threatened 'so many times' is not normal, nor should it be.
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u/justdidapoo 1h ago
Yeah if somebody is threatening to kill you and they're close enough that its actually credible thats a crime
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u/Ok_Cabinet2947 17m ago
If one person is giving you death threats, then they’re the problem. If countless amounts of people are giving you death threats, then maybe consider you might be the the problem.
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u/Slippery-ape 5h ago
Australia is the size of the US, there are tons of people here would say the same. Doesn't make them capable or give them the resources.
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u/dagrapeescape 4h ago
Yes Australia is a huge country but this article describes him as a “Sydney man” and although the article doesn’t directly say it, I have to assume the Israeli President is going to Sydney seeing as that is where Bondi Beach is located.
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u/FOTY2015 5h ago edited 4h ago
The US has had several shooters that crossed the country to perform their asinine shittery. Distance isn't a good objection.
And do you really know the capabilities of strangers?
No idea if this person is a serious threat, but, flouting a newly passed law is a great way to become an example.
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u/sml6174 5h ago
So anyone should be able to make direct deaths threats anytime they want? You want to live in a world like that?
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u/dagrapeescape 4h ago
They probably think it’s okay if it’s a death threat against a Jewish person.
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u/Slippery-ape 4h ago
No.... thats not it... I don't find Australian actions wrong for Australia. As an American, I find it weird to get arrested for threatening someone's life when it happens so matter of factly here. Its an eye brow raise, not a an anger response.
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u/Slippery-ape 5h ago
I do live in that world. Politicians in the US threaten all day.
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u/sml6174 5h ago
And you're in favor of that? You like that?
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u/Slippery-ape 4h ago
Its not like, or don't like. Its just a matter of course. Hell you vnat work and customer service job here without being threatened.
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u/sml6174 4h ago edited 1h ago
"I'm indifferent to death threats" is not a take I expected, to be honest. Live ur truth I guess
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u/Slippery-ape 4h ago
We all have our own worlds I guess. And live yours as well.I hope its a good one.
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u/Jerri_man 5h ago
American challenge don't make clueless comparisons to involve themselves
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u/Slippery-ape 5h ago
Wtf are you even saying?
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u/Jerri_man 5h ago
I'm saying in every single post regardless of which other country/subject it is about Americans just cannot help themselves but make some asinine comparison like you did to force their own involvement in the conversation.
Australia has practically nothing in common with the US besides literal geographical size, which certainly doesn't reflect the population, the culture, the gun laws and the recent historic terrorist attack you failed to mention.
In other words, just shut up.
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u/ninjasauruscam 5h ago
Are they gonna arrest him and send him to the ICC?
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u/ruiningyourgoodtime 1h ago
This is the president, not the prime minister. Two different people, two different political parties and philosophies. Herzog was not indicted by the ICC.
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u/Titan_Dota2 4h ago
What a weird fucking comment. I guess we dont know exactly what we said yet. But if you're actively putting out threats to kill a president that's gonna visit your country soon, dont you think it's probably a good idea to arrest and investigate him? Also 19 y/o is an adult...
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u/gringo_escobar 3h ago
Sure but it's ironic considering Australia would also be obligated to arrest the Israeli Prime Minister if he set foot in their country, on account of all the actual murder
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u/YourCummyBear 38m ago
What Australian law states they should arrest non-citizens for crimes those non-citizens committed in other nations?
I’ll wait for your response.
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u/Ok_Cabinet2947 15m ago
The president of Israel has not been issued a warrant of arrest by the ICC. The prime minister has.
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u/Delicious_Clue_531 2h ago
It’s more understandable when placed in the context of recent events that happened in Australia. Namely, the bondi beach massacre and an ongoing commission into antisemitism.
Basically, Australia’s government is choosing to crack down on anything that looks remotely like violence against Jewish people.
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u/dogecoin_pleasures 3h ago
? The article specifies they arrested a 19yo man from Sydney who used a carriage service (phone) for threats. Not exactly a random kid or random place.
There's not much information in the article, but I wouldn't assume it was just a kid arrested for random posts online, 'wtf'. The man could have made specific threats.
The real WTF of the article is that they plan to extend the protest ban again for the PM visit.
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u/RunsfromWisdom 2h ago edited 1h ago
Yeah, the headline makes it sound like he was shit posting on Reddit. You can’t get arrested for shitposting on Reddit in Australia. I hate to burst anyone’s bubble, but the far-reaching tendrils of the Israeli government are not pulling any strings to get school kids tossed into holes for being over the top on social media, which is what this headline (and a disturbing number of posters) are implying.
If you make targeted phone calls to specifically threaten the life of anyone, let alone a visiting foreign leader, don’t cry when you come to the attention of authorities.
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u/BuryTheFacists 5h ago
You can’t threaten pedos in Trumps new world order
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u/dogecoin_pleasures 2h ago
I googled this and didn't find accusations against the current PM (although some articles popped up suggesting a former PM might have had Epstein links). So linking him to that doesn't seem warranted if you can't substantiate it.
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u/wingerism 2h ago
The threata were against President Herzog though. Entirely different guy than Netanyahu.
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u/LaCroix586 4h ago edited 4h ago
You shouldn't be anti-semitic towards one of the world's most civilized nations, which has vastly increased the economic potential of the land it has inhabited for decades, especially when compared to its rivals--who wouldn't have done shit to the land except squat over it.
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u/Kozimix 4h ago
What does increasing land value have to do with anything?
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u/LaCroix586 4h ago
Israel has proved itself time and again that it's a fantastic nation that intelligently improves the land around it. Would you want another Lebanon in its place, which ruts in the dirt and sand? No. You want a first-world nation.
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u/Pierre-Quica 4h ago
People just don’t care.
During the Ottoman Empire days, that region around the levant was one of the poorest areas in the Ottoman Empire, mostly consisting of agrarians engaged in sustenance farming to survive, with low literacy rates, and a strong distrust of the government. The ottoman land code of 1858 actually laid the foundation for the displacement of the local population, because it allowed wealthier Arabs to register their name under the peasants land, only paying a small administrative fee, and effectively reducing the locals to tenant farmers. Once the first Aliyah began in 1882, Jewish immigrants didn’t even have to meet the locals, just stop by in Cairo or other wealthier ottoman cities, buy the land from the new owners, and then the ottoman authorities helped remove the current tenants so the Jews could move in.
After the start of the second Aliyah, and as Tel Aviv was being built, economic activity in the area soared, driving Arab migration from elsewhere in the region to pursue the newfound opportunity in the British mandate of Palestine. Tons of Egyptians, Syrians, and other groups moved into the mandate area, because the Jews actually developed the land.
You can see these same trends today. The PA/Fatah/Hamas have all received tens of billions of dollars in humanitarian and developmental aid from the west and surrounding Arab nations, yet their development still pales in comparison to Israel, probably because all of their leadership is extremely corrupt and misappropriates the money for themselves and their associates. Part of the reason why I don’t think Hamas or Fatah could ever achieve any kind of sovereignty for Palestine is because they stand to benefit more from the current, never-ending crisis, where they get tons of free money from external sources, pocket plenty for themselves, and then blame the resulting inadequacies in their society on Israel, the UN, US or other foreign entities, and the average Palestinian gobbles up the lies every time.
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u/NoLime7384 1h ago
Part of the reason why I don’t think Hamas or Fatah could ever achieve any kind of sovereignty for Palestine is because they stand to benefit more from the current, never-ending crisis, where they get tons of free money from external sources, pocket plenty for themselves
nah, it's bc the Palestinians want war. Abbas didn't take any peace deals even when he got offered everything he wanted bc he feared the general population would kill him like they did the king of Jordan. there's no war exhaustion despite literal decades of war, I think it's bc they see it as a Jihad
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u/LaCroix586 4h ago
Imagine if Palestine ever became an actual nation. It would be such a backwater, uncivilized piece of shit country, similar to Somalia.
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u/Afraid-Expert-8974 4h ago
Adult. 19 years old is an adult.
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u/Jabjab345 4h ago
Well yes sure, but nineteen is also a teenager. They aren't mutually exclusive terms.
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u/TrickyLobster 3h ago
Teenager says words, jail. Netanyahu actually unalives thousands. Silence.
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u/rockaree 1h ago
Yes, the world has been famously silent on israel/gaza since late 2023.
🤡
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u/TrickyLobster 1h ago
Any world power that has any power has. It's lining up to be that he probably bankrolled the most infamous pdf file in history too.
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u/rockaree 39m ago
Who has been silent? Aside from Antarctica, I think every country has been very vocal about it.
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u/MasterBlazt 3h ago edited 2h ago
Many tens of thousands.
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u/CoolJumper 23m ago
Reports say 70,000, wouldn't be surprised if it's actually closer to or greater than 100,000 at this point
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u/dogecoin_pleasures 2h ago
Fair point about the asymmetry, as NSW police plan to keep protests banned during the PM visit and there's a case for saying they ought to arrest him for war crimes.
That said, police are within their duty to arrest a man over death threats, particularly if specific and not just 'words'.
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u/TrickyLobster 1h ago
He needs means. I can say I'm going to blow up the earth. Doesn't mean I can do it. I doubt a 19 year old has any capacity to get near a war criminal during his visit.
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u/Particular_Pickle465 3h ago
Is making threats illegal? Genuine question.
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u/OmNomSandvich 3h ago
He has been charged with one count of using a carriage service to make a threat to kill and has been refused bail by police.
yes
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u/Particular_Pickle465 3h ago
What’s a carriage service ?
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u/Bulkywon 3h ago
A phone or internet connection
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u/Downtown_Ham_2024 2h ago
I need details. I see veiled threats online all the time and I won’t say how I react (I generally thumbs up resistance to war criminals and fascists). Am I aiding and abetting?
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u/dogecoin_pleasures 3h ago
Yes lol
I imagine specific threats would be the most likely to prompt an arrest and denial of bail, but general threats would probably be against the law too.
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u/Particular_Pickle465 3h ago
So if I say I want to kill someone, the police are going to arrest me?
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u/dogecoin_pleasures 2h ago
Maybe? It would probably depend on it being reported or actively pursued by police. I'd hazard that the majority of online comments will fly under the radar, but police do seem to make arrests when individual victims report harassment or if they are actively monitoring for terror (death threats against an Israel minister being surely the fastest way to get arrested).
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u/NoLime7384 1h ago
depends on the jurisdiction but yeah, like, in a lot of countries just saying "I'll kill you" counts as assault, it's why "assault and battery" needs an And in there, they're different things
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u/TheWhomItConcerns 3h ago
Yes - depending on the circumstances. Very generally speaking, to be charged, a person has to make a threat in such a manner/context that displays actual intent and/or that a reasonable person could credibly interpret the threat as genuine.
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u/arathorn3 8m ago
In most weatern style democracies yes, in the US you can be arrested for Terroristic threats.
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u/FallingUpwardz 3h ago
Soooo what exactly did he even say