Neo-Nazi Jacob Hersant spoken to by police as Anzac Day service marred by outburst during Welcome to Country

A neo-Nazi has been spoken to by police after he and a group of men disrupted a contemplative Anzac Day Dawn Service on Friday morning.

Booing and heckling rang out across the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne during a Welcome to Country.

WACH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Far-right group disrupt Dawn Service Welcome to Country.

Jacob Hersant, a self-declared neo-Nazi and the first person in Victoria to be convicted of performing the Nazi salute, was seen being led away from the shrine by police.

Bunurong elder Uncle Mark Brown was opening the service by paying respects to the traditional owners of the land and acknowledging their continuous and unbroken connection to country, when a voice in the crowd cried out: “It’s Australia.”

“Boo. Boo. What about the Anzacs?” the heckler yelled.

Similar sentiments came from several crowd members at other moments throughout the morning, as various speakers took the stage.

A group of about six to eight men interrupted the ceremony.

They were standing close to the front of the crowd, so their voices were picked up by microphones and could be heard over speakers.

Far-right extremists were understood to be in the crowd, and phone footage from attendees captured a young man who can be heard saying he is “standing up for white Australia” and repeating the phrase “Australia for the white man”.

The man can also be heard attempting to justify his comments by saying his beliefs were shared by Australia’s diggers, declaring “the Anzacs were racist”.

He can be seen smirking in the footage as shocked crowd members attempted to silence him, calling him “ignorant” and telling him to “shut up” and “show some respect”.

Attendees described the outburst in Melbourne as concerning, and Sunrise host Nat Barr slammed it as “disgusting”.

“It was horrific to have those people here booing, I thought that was absolute disrespect,” one attendee told Sunrise.

Police have interviewed a 26-year-old man from Kensington about what they described as offensive behaviour and have said they will proceed with a summons.

The man was asked to leave the Shrine of Remembrance, Victoria Police said.

RSL Victoria said the disruptive comments were drowned out by a clapping crowd of people showing their support for Indigenous Australians.

“The RSL Victoria and the Anzac Commemoration Council are saddened and disappointed at the actions of a tiny minority at today’s Dawn Service and express sincere apologies to Uncle Mark Brown and the Bunurong people,” RSL Victoria said.

RSL president Dr Robert Webster said: “The actions of a handful (of people) were completely disrespectful to the Aboriginal community, veterans, and the spirit of Anzac Day.

“In response, the spontaneous applause from the 50,000-strong crowd attending the service drowned out those who disrupted and showed the respect befitting of the occasion.”

Aussie leaders saddened by the stunt

A number of the nation’s leaders and veterans have since slammed the stunt.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton said Australians should be proud to celebrate Indigenous heritage on Anzac Day.

“We have a proud Indigenous heritage in this country and we should be proud to celebrate it as part of today and we should always remember too, and remind ourselves as we did at the Opera House last night, that Indigenous Australians played a very significant part and still do today in the ranks of the Australian Defence Force,” Dutton said after an Anzac Day service in Queensland.

“We should never take for granted what we have in this country and the work of the diggers fighting the Nazis and fighting tyranny and autocrats, that’s what’s kept us safe.”

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan called the racist comments a “hateful disruption”.

“A neo-Nazi disrupting this day is appalling — it has no place here,” Allan said.

“Anzac Day honours the values our Anzacs lived and died for: courage, loyalty, mateship, and sacrifice. Those who booed in the dark showed they have none of these qualities.

“To pierce the sombre silence of the Dawn Service is more than disrespect — it dishonours all who have served, fought and fallen.

“And to boo the Aboriginal servicemen and women who served our nation shows ignorance, hatred, and a complete lack of respect — for them, and for everything Anzac Day stands for.

“Anzac Day is a time to unite, reflect, and remember. Today and every day, we honour every Australian who has served the nation we are so lucky to call our home.”

In Sydney, rain fell on the cenotaph in Martin Place as dignitaries and representatives marked the 110th anniversary of the landing at Gallipoli during World War I.

Former Air Force warrant officer and Aboriginal elder Harry Allie welcomed attendees to Gadigal country and touched on Indigenous Australians’ history within the defence force.

“As Indigenous Australians were not of European descent, they were exempt from military service during the time of World War I,” he said.

“(But) it has been estimated that up to 1000, perhaps more, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people came forward to enlist ... it is not known what motivated Indigenous Australians to enlist but loyalty and patriotism without doubt played a part.”

New Zealand’s contributions to the fighting forces were also marked, including through a performance of the traditional Maori hymn Song Of Sorrow.

— With AAP and Teegan Dolling