Hate preachers deported after being granted visas

Two hate preachers with documented records of antisemitic rhetoric were granted Australian visas to headline a national speaking tour, prompting Jewish groups to demand urgent reform of the country’s immigration vetting processes.

Bangladeshi preacher Mizanur Rahman Azhari and Shaykh Ahmadullah were brought to Australia by the Islamic Practice and Dawah Circle (IPDC) for a speaking tour across Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra. Azhari was deported by Home Affairs minister Tony Burke after Australian authorities reportedly became aware of his presence only when social media posts surfaced. Ahmadullah fled the country before his visa could be cancelled.

But Australia, Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) executive manager Joel Burnie said the episode exposed a fundamental failure in Australia’s immigration screening.

Azhari has previously praised Adolf Hitler as “divine punishment” against Jews, described Jews as the “biggest terrorists in the world,” and called them a “poisonous blemish” linked to global crises and disease. He was barred from entering the United Kingdom in 2021, after British MP Bob Blackman told the House of Commons that Azhari was working to spread a “message of hatred against Jews and Hindus.” In 2023, his admission to the United States to speak at a Philadelphia conference triggered widespread condemnation from Bangladeshi-American activists and human rights organisations, who called for his visa to be immediately revoked.

Meanwhile Ahmadullah has publicly stated that Jewish people “keep the whole world in turmoil” and labelled them “despicable.”