A British-Israeli influencer and martial arts instructor has claimed the Australian government involved the United Arab Emirates to stop him from boarding a flight down under.
Sammy Yahood is a well-known commentator with 71,000 followers on Instagram and was due to speak at two Australian synagogues and address some survivors of the Bondi terror attack.
Yahood received news that the Australian government had cancelled his visa while he was on a stop-over in Abu Dhabi, but posted online that he would continue on his flight in order to make it to Australia even if he was declined entry.
However, in his most recent update posted around 8:30 a.m. (AEST) on Jan. 27, Yahood claimed the Australian government prevented him from boarding the flight in the UAE.
“I have not got on the plane to Melbourne, they blocked me, the Australian government went to so much effort to stop me getting on that plane and even touching the soil that they called up the UAE and made sure that didn’t happen,” he claimed on a video uploaded to his social media.
“This is not a story about me whatsoever, this is a story about government overreaching, this is a story about tyranny, censorship and control.”
Yahood also runs the “peace through strength” movement that involves teaching physical self-defence as a component of tackling anti-Semitism.
He said he would return to Israel for the time being.
The 25-year-old martial artist has also been a vocal supporter of the Iranian uprising against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and has been critical of the current British government.
The Department of Home Affairs has declined to comment on Yahood’s case.
“For privacy reasons, the department cannot comment on individual cases,” a spokesperson told The Epoch Times.
Australia’s Reputation Tarnished: Jewish Group
The Australian Jewish Association (AJA) condemned the barring of Yahood.
“Sammy Yahood was scheduled to visit Australia to speak at major synagogues in Sydney and Melbourne and to participate in a series of events with different Jewish organisations,” AJA CEO Robert Gregory said.
“While we weren’t involved in planning the visit, just days ago, the Australian Jewish Association had secured Sammy to run a self-defence session in partnership with another synagogue.
“The event generated great interest from the Jewish community amid heightened insecurity in Australia.”
Yahood’s visa cancellation follows that of former Israeli Minister Ayelet Shaked, Jewish United States tech entrepreneur Hillel Fuld, and Knesset member Simcha Rothman.
Gregory warned the “persistent targeting” of Jewish visitors by the government would contribute to the rise of anti-Semitism, calling for similar actions against Islamic hate preachers.
Under the federal government’s new hate speech laws, the home affairs ministers will receive broader powers to cancel visas.
