Photo credit: BBC
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was booed and heckled at a major mosque In Sydney on Friday after being invited to attend Eid prayers.
India Today reports that Albanese and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke were attending an event marking the end of Ramadan at the Lakemba mosque, one of the country’s largest. The visit was intended as a show of engagement with Muslim Australians but was disrupted when some attendees began protesting during a speech by a mosque leader.
Several worshippers accused Albanese and his deputy of being “genocide supportes”, booing and shouting “:get out of here”. Videos shared on social media showed people chanting “Allahu Akbar” (God is great)
According to the BBC, one person yelled, “Why is he here? Get him out of here! It’s a disgrace.”
Amid jeers, Albanese beat a hasty retreat while avoiding a large crowd gathered on the steps of the mosque.
Police removed one man who shouted at the prime minister. He was later released without charge after being issued a move-on direction.
The incident comes amid growing anger among sections of Australia’s Muslim community over the government’s response to the Gaza conflict and concerns about rising Islamophobia domestically.
The Lebanese Muslim Association, which operates the mosque, defended its decision to host the prime minister, rejecting criticism that the invitation signaled endorsement of government policies.
Speaking later to the media, Albanese said he had received a largely warm reception from the more than 30,000 people in attendance. “Overwhelmingly the reception was incredibly positive,” he said.
He suggested the protests may be linked to recent government moves to outlaw extremist organizations such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir, which has been branded a hate group using new laws passed in the wake of the Bondi massacre.
Community tensions in Australia have risen since the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and the subsequent Israeli military campaign in Gaza, with reports of both antisemitism and Islamophobia increasing nationwide.
