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Sky News AU
2 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Israeli-American speaker Hillel Fuld responds after Albanese government revokes his visa claiming islamophobia
Israeli-American speaker Hillel Fuld has responded after Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke revoked his visa citing 'islamophobia rhetoric' which risked inciting discord against Muslim Australians. Israeli speaker and technology expert Hillel Fuld, born in New York, US, has responded after Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke revoked his visa citing 'islamophobia rhetoric' which risked inciting discord against Australia's Muslim population. Fuld, who was set to speak at fundraising events in Sydney and Melbourne hosted by Magen David Adom, an Israeli national emergency service, later in June, confirmed he had been barred from Australia 'because of my tweets'. The Jewish American entrepreneur has more than 176,000 followers on X where he has posted extensively on the conflict between Israel and Hamas. In one post on X, Fuld claimed up to 15 per cent of Muslims were 'radicalised' , that Islam was a 'global plague' and compared Gazans to Nazi-era Germans and should be 'treated as such'. In another post, Fuld said liberal western values can 'never coexist next to radical Islamic values'. In the report on the decision, the Home Affairs Minister said Fuld had used social media to deny 'documented atrocities' and had the potential to use the speaking events to make more 'inflammatory statements'. According to The Australian, the visa cancellation decision cited one Instagram post, made in a March 2024, in which Fuld dismissed as 'propaganda' reports by international media outlets that Israeli troops had opened fire on Palestinians seeking aid as 'propaganda'. 'This consideration is based on the fact that the visa holder has posted on social media and has made statements denying documented atrocities and Islamophobia rhetoric which has been received by members of the Australian community as inflammatory and concerning,' the decision paper read. 'The visa holder has the potential to use speaking events and other platforms while in Australia to continue making inflammatory statements which have the potential to incite discord. 'I consider there is a risk that those views will be adopted by members of the community and potentially increase the level of hatred against particular segments of the community, namely the Islamic population.' — Hillel Fuld (@HilzFuld) May 16, 2025 Fuld wrote on X following the decision and said he had returned from Jewish holidays to find it had become public information Australia had revoked his visa. 'Many people are working diplomatic channels so I kept it under wraps for now, but yes, it's true, Australia has banned my entry to the country because of my tweets,' he wrote. In his social media bio, Fuld defines himself as a 'proud Zionist', a tech columnist, advisor to Google and Microsoft, as well as a father of five. In his latest post to X, Fuld joked about whether he should add 'persona non grata' to his list of labels. The Australian Jewish Association released a statement on Saturday calling the decision an 'outrage' and 'attack' on Jewish Australians and the free speech rights of US citizens. 'Australia's Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, who represents the electorate with the most Muslims cancelled the visa of Hillel Fuld, a Jewish man with American citizenship,' the AJA said. 'The Minister waited until late Friday afternoon once the Jewish Shabbat holiday had set in and over a public holiday long weekend. Hillel was supposed to arrive early next week. This same minister is responsible for importing thousands of Gazans to Australia without adequate security checks.' The AJA also called for the Trump administration to intervene to overturn the decision.
The Guardian
09-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labor was warned its perceived ‘one-sided' Israel support over Gaza raised social cohesion concerns
The home affairs department warned the government as early as November 2023 that its perceived one-sidedness in support of Israel during the Gaza conflict left Palestinian and Muslim Australians feeling 'extremely angry' and 'betrayed' , as well as concerned about social cohesion, documents reveal. A November 2023 briefing document to the then immigration minister, Andrew Giles, was obtained by Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws. It discussed 'social cohesion measures', including a $25m package announced in October 2023 to strengthen resilience and improve support to Australian Palestinian, Muslim and other communities in Australia after the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent war waged by Israel in Gaza. A total of $52.8m had been approved for social cohesion measures relating to the conflict, according to the document. On the perception of the government at that time, the Department of Home Affairs told the minister that Palestinian and Muslim communities were 'feeling extremely angry, hurt, and betrayed by the perceived one-sided government messaging and lack of support for Palestinians in Gaza, and for Australian communities'. The department said community members were traumatised by the conflict, distressed about the welfare of those in Gaza, and felt that 'statements from senior leaders are undoing previous progress on improving social cohesion'. Communities had called for 'more balanced statements from the government' amid fear about increased Islamophobia and hate speech, the department advised, and the response to the funding announcement had been lukewarm. The brief stated that Jewish communities were appreciative of the funding announcements but were concerned the package's funding would not be accessible to all Jewish Australian communities, and feared for their safety and instances of antisemitism. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email A total of $7m of the package to support Palestinian and Muslim communities was set aside for media organisations, with AAP and SBS given $3m in funding to combat misinformation and disinformation about the war. This funding was scrutinised in mid-2024 in Senate estimates, and Palestinian groups expressed frustration at the partial reallocation, given another $25m in funding had gone directly to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. The 2023 briefing document cited the 'significant media interest' in the conflict and its impacts in Australia, and stated that the funding rationale was based on community concern about 'misleading, divisive and insensitive' coverage. 'There is significant media interest in the Hamas-Israel conflict, including how its impacts are being felt and played out in the domestic setting and government's response,' the department stated. 'Communities have reported that statements from public leaders have polarised public debate, exacerbated tensions, and decreased impacted communities' sense of belonging.' Home Affairs was cognisant of the potential issues involved in Australia's security department becoming involved in media factchecking through funding, noting that the department 'could be criticised for impinging on the editorial independence of' both AAP and SBS and be perceived as 'censoring public debate and discussion or political opinions'. The department had previously faced criticism from the right, including politicians such as Liberal Alex Antic, for making over 500 requests to social media companies to take down misinformation and disinformation related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Its advice highlighted that the grant guidelines under the funding package highlighted both agencies' editorial independence, and the department 'will not and cannot seek to influence editorial decisions'. When asked about the department's decision to divert some funding to media organisations, rather then entirely to the community directly, the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, told Guardian Australia: 'There are serious challenges at the moment in making sure the government supports communities through an extraordinarily difficult time. I'm focused on that and I'm continuing to consult with the relevant groups.' In the past 18 months, the opposition has criticised the Albanese governmentover its response to rising incidents of antisemitism in Australia. It has accused Labor of failing to offer appropriate support to Israel in the region, including after Australia split with the US in a December vote at the UN that called on the end of Israel's 'unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible'.
Al Jazeera
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Australia's PM denies double standard after alleged attacks on Muslim women
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has rejected suggestions that his government has been too slow to denounce Islamophobia following the alleged assault of two Muslim women at a shopping centre in Melbourne. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Albanese said any attack on a person on the basis of their religion was 'reprehensible'. 'I take all attacks on people on the basis of their faith seriously, and they should all face the full force of the law,' he said. 'We've appointed a special envoy on Islamophobia. That's an important step forward. And I'm someone who celebrates our diversity and who respects people, regardless of their faith.' Albanese made the comments after some Muslim Australians, including international cricket player Usman Khawaja, accused the government of not doing enough to combat Islamophobia. On Tuesday, Khawaja, who was the first Muslim to play Test cricket for Australia, said the alleged attacks would go unmentioned by Albanese and opposition leader Peter Dutton, and be 'swept under the rug like all attacks against the Islamic community'. Khawaja on Wednesday said he appreciated Albanese and Dutton, who branded the attack a 'disgrace,' for 'speaking up' about the attacks. One of the alleged victims, Ealaf al-Esawie, told local media that the attacker hit her on the face and chest before shoving her to the floor. 'I feel terrified, traumatised and still can't believe what happened to me,' al-Easawi was quoted as saying by the Australian Associated Press news agency. 'The scene won't come out of my head. It keeps repeating itself in my mind – how I got attacked. 'I'm not a homebody, but since Thursday, I've been stuck in front of the four walls, and every crack I hear from the house, I'm like, 'Oh my God, there's someone coming'.' Police in Melbourne said on Wednesday they had arrested a 31-year-old woman and charged her with assault over the suspected Islamophobic attacks on February 13. 'Police will allege the victims were targeted due to wearing head coverings,' a Victoria police spokesperson said in a statement. 'There is absolutely no place in our society for discriminatory, racist, or hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated,' the statement said. Advocacy groups have reported a sharp rise in Islamophobic and anti-Semitic incidents in Australia since October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a multipronged attack on Israel, subsequently leading to its war in Gaza.
