State taxpayers and businesses are counting the cost of weekly pro-Palestine rallies, with the bill surpassing $25 million for policing local activities concerning the war in Gaza.
The independent Parliamentary Budget Office calculated the operational cost of Victoria Police's Operation Park, launched in 2023 after the October 7 attacks on Israel that escalated the conflict, at $10.2 million.
Another $14.9 million has been spent on police officer salaries from 23,928 dedicated shifts.
The wage costs would have been incurred regardless of whether a protest was held, the report noted.
The estimate did not capture indirect spending such as backfilling shifts at stations to cover officers sent to protests or costs related to broader operation activities, including prejudice‑related crimes and patrols.
Activists across Australia have poured onto the streets since Hamas, designated a terror group by Australia, killed 1200 Israelis and took some 250 hostages in a cross-border attack.
Israel's subsequent military assault on the blockaded enclave has killed nearly 65,000 Palestinians including more than 20,000 children, according to aid agencies and local health authorities.
Sunday marked the 100th successive weekly pro-Palestine rally in Melbourne.
Another organised by Free Palestine Melbourne is scheduled for Sunday outside Victoria's State Library, following AFL preliminary finals at the MCG on Friday night and Saturday night.
The costing was requested by opposition police spokesman David Southwick, who accused protesters "hijacking" the city.
"Those protesters have had their opportunity and their say," he told reporters on Friday.
The protests were in direct response to government failure and a "statement of survival" for Palestinians and their allies, Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni said.
"With a genocide in Gaza, people are obliged to act," he said in a statement to AAP.
"The action they have taken is peaceful."
The estimate was just the "tip of the iceberg" as it did not account for the "millions more lost in business revenue, productivity and tourism", Committee for Melbourne chief executive Scott Veenker said.
Hospitality businesses in the CBD had reported sales were down by as much as 50 per cent during protest periods, Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association chief executive Wes Lambert said.
The peak body has backed the state opposition's push for stronger move-on police powers and a protest permit system, as established in other states.
In July, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the force considered protest permits but decided it was not worth introducing.
The City of Melbourne council endorsed a plan in August to urge the Victorian and federal governments to review protest safeguards.
Senior Victorian minister Lily D'Ambrosio said people were entitled to protest peacefully and the government did not tell police how to manage their resources.
Responding to protests was "routine work of police" but unplanned demonstrations were frustrating officers and causing community disruption, a force spokeswoman said.
"With proper engagement, we're able to resource protests more efficiently and work with protest organisers so they conduct a safe event with minimal disruption to the broader community," they said.
Israel was on Tuesday found to have committed genocide by a United Nations inquiry comprising three members, including former Australian Human Rights Commissioner Chris Sidoti.
The claim has been repeatedly denied by Israel.