Police are ‘examining’ comments made at a Christchurch rally after Free Palestine Party president Paul Hopkinson described October 7 as a victory, referring to the anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel in 2023.

The registered political party has been allocated more than $82,000 in public funding for election broadcasting.

In footage of the gathering, attended by Green Party MP Kahu Carter,  Hopkinson said his party wanted to acknowledge the “victory” of October 7.

It also published a statement on 8 October describing the attacks as one of the greatest victories against oppression in human history.

The statement defended Hamas and described Israeli military personnel and other security figures killed during the attacks as legitimate targets.

“The Free Palestine Party celebrates the Victory of the courageous resistance fighters of the Gaza Strip on October 7th, and their continuing resistance to the ongoing genocide of the apartheid regime,” it said.

Senior Sergeant Roy Appley told chrislynchmedia.com “police had maintained a presence at the gathering in Christchurch last Saturday and were aware of feedback about some of the comments made.”

“I am looking into the nature of what was said, alongside the overall activity of the event,” Appley said.

“Police recognise the lawful right to protest. As with any protest, our role is to uphold the law and ensure public safety is maintained.”

Hopkinson and the Free Palestine Party have been approached for comment.

“Insensitive, cowardly, offensive”

Dr John Battersby, Senior fellow at Massey University’s Centre for Defence and Security Studies, said the remarks were “insensitive, cowardly, offensive and unnecessary.”

But he did not believe they crossed the legal threshold. “In terms of inciting, I don’t think it did that. In terms of advocating violence, I don’t think it did that. I think probably what it’s doing is basically right at the limits of the freedom of expression and probably inappropriate at best,” he said.

“I thought personally, why doesn’t he go and say that on the Israeli side of that border and just see how he gets on. And then why doesn’t he go and visit the other side, and just see the human suffering on both sides of it and maybe realise that kind of comment just doesn’t pick up the tragedy of what’s gone on there.”

The bar for a criminal offence was high, and required someone to actually threaten, incite or provoke violence, Battersby said.

“He praises the support for an organisation that has been identified as a terrorist organisation. Lots of people in the past have done that. Lots of people have supported the IRA or the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine or any number of others.”

The police approach was what he would expect from a law enforcement agency, he said. “I’m glad they’re examining it. Looking at it in the context of what’s going on, with the Bill of Rights Act sitting alongside, looking at the various pieces of legislation about language offences. Has it crossed, has it not?

“If it was me, I think my judgement would be it hasn’t crossed the threshold yet.”

The October 7 attacks

On October 7, 2023, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups launched a coordinated assault on southern Israel, attacking residential communities, a music festival and military installations. About 1200 people were killed, most of them civilians, and more than 250 people were taken hostage into Gaza. Gunmen stormed homes, shot families and killed people trying to escape. Investigations found some victims were burned alive inside their houses, while others were killed as they sheltered in safe rooms and bomb shelters.

At the Nova music festival, attackers opened fire on people at the outdoor event, chasing festivalgoers through fields and along nearby roads as they tried to flee. United Nations investigators documented cases of people being shot at close range, bodies being mutilated and hostages being subjected to degrading treatment.

Israel’s military response

Israel responded by launching a major military offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, involving extensive airstrikes, ground operations and restrictions on the entry of essential supplies. The campaign caused widespread destruction across Gaza, with homes, hospitals, schools and critical infrastructure damaged or destroyed, and much of the population repeatedly displaced.

More than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed since the offensive began, many of them women and children, according to Gaza health authorities, Reuters reported on 10 October. Israel’s conduct has come under intense international scrutiny. A United Nations Commission of Inquiry concluded in June 2024 that both Hamas and Israeli authorities had committed war crimes, and in September 2025 found Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.

Israel rejects the genocide finding and maintains that its military operations targeted Hamas, not civilians.

NZSIS warns about extremist rhetoric

The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service declined to comment about the specific rally when approached by chrislynchmedia.com, instead directed enquiries to its latest assessment of the country’s security threats.

In its 2026 Security Threat Environment report, the intelligence agency identifies the conflict in Gaza as one of several international conflicts contributing to heightened tensions within New Zealand.

The report warns that violent rhetoric linked to overseas conflicts is filtering into New Zealand communities, including threatening and intimidating behaviour directed at people with opposing views.

Director General of Security Andrew Hampton also identifies antisemitism and Islamophobia as concerning themes within New Zealand’s violent extremism environment.

“Such harmful rhetoric should be called out early to stop it from festering and crossing the threshold to violence,” Hampton wrote. Violent extremism in New Zealand is increasingly influenced by international events and the spread of extremist rhetoric online, the agency says.

There was always a concern the conflict could motivate someone in New Zealand to act, on either the pro-Israeli or anti-Israeli side, Battersby said.

“This sort of activity in New Zealand is very infrequent. But it does happen and there’s always a risk that it might set something off.”

People should understand that Israel emerged from the Holocaust, and that its creation displaced a great many Palestinians, he said.

“You can see the human story on both. And that’s what I would encourage people to look at instead of picking a side. I really don’t like that part of New Zealand politics that has decided that we have to pick a side now. We don’t.

“We can advocate for, let’s settle down, let’s not celebrate human misery by either side.”