TRANSCRIPT
Protesters have been active in Melbourne's central business district since Friday, vandalising hotels with red paint and blocking traffic.
A small group of demonstrators from Extinction Rebellion - a UK founded global environmental movement, also blocked a street near the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre which is hosting the weapons expo.
Disrupt Land Forces activist, Nathalie Farah says they are standing against the death and destruction brought by weapons of war.
"We don't want weapons in our city. We don't want weapons in this continent. We don't want to be supplying arms to a genocide entity like Israel. It is against international law to be supplying to Israel. And this government continues to do it and they continue to shut down debate saying that we are anti-Semitic, saying that we are threatening social cohesion. To Penny Wong, I would say we are not the ones threatening social cohesion, by not listening to your people you are actually threatening social cohesion."
Last year, the Victorian government secured the relocation of the nation's biggest defence industry showcase from Brisbane.
The conference is intended to promote Australian military innovation to international contractors.
But protesters have questioned its timing given the sensitivity of the conflict in the Middle East.
Nathalie Farah has been taking part in a weekly pro-Palestinian demonstration.
"This is the protest capital of this continent. There is a beautiful history of resistance in the city. And to bring it from, you know, Brisbane where it was hosted the last couple of times and the Victorian government again investing millions of dollars to host it here. It seems like they are asking for trouble to be honest."
Victoria Police has erected what's been called a ring of steel around the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition centre.
Extra officers have been deployed from around the state in the event more protests erupt in the coming days.
Police have described this as its largest such operation since the World Economic Forum in 2000.
More than 100 people were arrested at the time.
Renee Nayee is with Students for Palestine.
"It is clearly an inflammatory decision of the Australian government to move the Land Forces expo to Melbourne, to the heart of pro-Palestine solidarity in this country. And like I said before all of us are going to be there to disrupt it and bring attention to it and even if we can't totally shut it down, we are going to bring attention to the fact that the Australian government has decided to bring and advertise Israeli weapons in Melbourne. They advertise these weapons as field tested on Palestinians. We will not allow it to happen."
In response to the criticism from protesters, the federal government described this as a privately run exhibition for the defence industry.
It's organised by the AMDA Foundation Limited - a registered charity - and the nation's largest promoter of international defence industry.
Military tanks, heavy-duty trucks and semi-automatic guns are some of the weapons expected be on display during the three-day event.
Land Forces says it has no comment on the protest activity.
