Muslim influencer Ousama Alshurafa barred from Australia ahead of tour
A Canadian-Palestinian influencer who called Hamas “freedom fighters” and praised their conduct after the October 7 massacre has had his Australian visa cancelled.
An Islamic social media influencer who praised the conduct of Hamas terrorists days after their October 7 massacre has had his visa cancelled.
Canadian-Palestinian Ousama Alshurafa, who describes himself as a Muslim influencer, speaker and author, was due to start his Australian speaking tour on Friday.
But on Thursday he had told his more than three million followers on social media that as he arrived at the airport in Canada he was stopped by security and his visa was revoked.
“Recently, the Australian government revoked my visa without warning, despite it being approved months ago, and based on the information they provided, it’s clear that this decision was made because I spoke publicly and unapologetically about Gaza,” he said.
“This isn’t about one visa or one country.
“This is about the global attempt to police Muslim speech, especially Palestinian speech.”
Just two days after Hamas executed the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust, Mr Alshurafa posted a video on his Twitter showing a Hamas terrorist inside an Israeli home who was boasting about trampling on the heads of Israelis, and shooting their skulls with bullets.
In the footage, an elderly Israeli lady can be seen lying in the bed, while another woman kneels on the floor, with the Hamas terrorist proclaiming that they spared women, children, and the elderly.
“In this video the Palestinian Resistance shows how they are following and abiding by the rules of war set by #sharia and the prophet Muhammad pbuh,” Mr Alshurafa wrote.
“They entered an Israeli soldiers home and killed him but spared the older lady, the young lady, and the child.”
Women, children and the elderly, including Australian grandmother Galit Carbone, were among 1200 people brutally murdered by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
In another tweet, responding to UK TV show host Piers Morgan’s acknowledgment of the plight of hostage families in November 2023, Mr Alshurafa said Hamas were “freedom fighters”.
“The audacity to occupy our land and then call us terrorists. We are freedom fighters. All of us,” he wrote.
“Don’t worry, your hostages are eating cornflakes and sipping on Kombucha while our hostages are having their nails pulled out.”
It followed questions by the Herald Sun to Home Affairs regarding some of Mr Alshurafa’s social media content.
Homes Affairs Minister Tony Burke has previously blocked dozens of visas based on what people had said online or in the media.
It comes after the Herald Sun revealed that Palestinian woman, Mona Zahed, who thanked Allah for keeping her alive long enough to witness Hamas’s deadly attack had been granted a visa.
That visa was ultimately cancelled after it was reported by the Herald Sun.
Some of the more high profile figures denied entry to Australia include American political commentator Candace Owens, controversial rapper Kanye West — after he released a song titled Heil Hitler — right-wing former Israeli politician Ayelet Shaked and Israeli speaker Hillel Fuld.
Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler welcomed the Albanese government’s decision to cancel his visa.
He said the federal government and national security agencies had made it clear that “anyone who celebrates the atrocities of October 7 or seeks to justify the brutal murder of 1,200 people” has no place in Australia.
“Under no circumstances should he have been allowed to come into our country and have a platform to spread hatred, anti-Semitism, and division within our community,” he said.
“It is truly sickening that this individual posted content online with Hamas terrorists boasting about shooting Israelis in the head on October 7.”
When contacted by the Herald Sun Mr Alshurafa said his message was one of “peace, dignity, and the protection of every innocent life”.
“I do not preach violence, I preach accountability, compassion, and the courage to speak truth without harming a soul,” he said.
ASIO chief Mike Burgess has warned that: “If you think terrorism is OK, if you think the destruction of the state of Israel is OK, if you think Hamas and what they did on the 7th of October is OK, I can tell you that is not OK”.
“And from an ASIO security assessment point of view, you will not pass muster,” he said.
A Home Affairs spokesperson denied that he had been granted a visa when asked by the Herald Sun earlier this week.
Mr Alshurafa was due to appear at four public events, alongside prominent Australian pro-Palestine campaigner Ahmed Bassal, in Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney.
Mr Bassal, who speaks at Stand 4 Palestine events, has previously declared on social media that: “It is compulsory for a woman to obey her husband, but not for a husband to obey his wife.”
“This is Islam, the greatest system of life for mankind,” he posted on Facebook in 2022.
“Take your religion from Allah and His messenger; and not from so-called “Western” thought.
“Allahu Akbar.”
Originally published as Muslim influencer Ousama Alshurafa barred from Australia ahead of tour
