Pro-Palestinian demonstrators crashed Minister Silvan Shalom's hotel in Melbourne, Australia on Sunday. Four of the demonstrators were arrested.
The incident took place after Minister Shalom addressed some 400 Australian public opinion leaders during a conference that focused on strategic issues. During the conference, some 200 students took part in a protest rally outside the hotel in which the Israeli delegation was staying.
The protestors circled the hotel a few times and chanted slogans calling for the "liberation of Palestine" and an end to the "Israeli apartheid and occupation regime."
Members of the Israeli delegation, which includes a number of Knesset members and public figures, said the protests intensified as the conference's gala approached.
The gala was attended by Jews from all over Australia.
At the height of Sunday's anti-Israel rally, about 20 protestors burst into the Israeli delegation's hotel. They were quickly contained by local police.
In his speech, Minister Shalom accused the Palestinians of hindering peace talks despite assistance Israel has been providing on the economic front, including direct financial aid the removal of IDF roadblocks to ease daily Palestinian life in the West Bank.
Despite these measures, said Shalom, the Palestinians have refused to return to the negotiations table.
Julia Gillard, deputy prime minister of Australia, spoke of the strong bond with Israel and the involvement of Australia's Jewish community.
Gillard also mentioned Australia's opposition to the Goldstone Report andthe fact that it had boycotted the "Durban II" conference, stressing that her country would continue to support Israel's right to self-defense.