Peter Dutton compares ‘river to the sea’ chants at pro-Palestinian protests to Hitler

Opposition leader’s comments ‘a very bad faith’ reading of protestors’ chant, Jewish Council of Australia says

• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has compared chants at pro-Palestine university protests to the ideology of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, in comments labelled “deeply offensive” by a prominent Jewish group.

Tensions are brewing over pro-Palestine encampments at universities across Australia, with leading universities writing to the attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, for legal advice on whether protesters’ chants were in breach of federal law.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup