Australian PM chased out of mosque as furious worshippers swarm leader

Australian PM chased out of mosque as furious worshippers swarm leader

WATCH: Former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia John Anderson asks if Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer know ‘what is required to sustain’ Judeo-Christian culture

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GB NEWS

Peter Stevens

By Peter Stevens


Published: 20/03/2026

- 05:43

Updated: 20/03/2026

- 08:04

Anthony Albanese claimed the event was 'incredibly positive' after crowds chanted 'shame on you' in his face

Australian PM Anthony Albanese was chased out of a mosque by Muslim worshippers while on an official visit to mark the end of Ramadan.

Mr Albanese and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke visited Lakemba Mosque in Sydney on Friday - where they received a bitter reception.


Video footage showed a man yelling "genocide supporters" at Mr Albanese and Mr Burke, while another could be heard shouting "putrid dog".

In one clip, two men are seen shouting: "Why is he in here? Ge him out of here!"

Gamel Kheir, the secretary of the Lebanese Muslim Society, pleaded for calm, telling followers to "respect the place you're in".

Mr Kheir said: "We must engage and have frank and open dialogue with our political leaders, and not shy away and be reclusive."

This sparked outrage from the crowd, with one heckler raging: "You called him honourable, he's responsible for the deaths of one million people, one million of our brothers and sisters."

Security soon rushed Mr Albanese out from mosque's administrative offices, before he was eventually ushered out of a rear exit.

Anthony Albanese Lakemba Mosque

Anthony Albanese had insults hurled at him by members of the Lakemba Mosque

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REUTERS

Video footage show people continuing to yell at the Australian Prime Minister as he headed out of Lakemba Mosque, shouting "shame on you" and other insults.

One individual was removed by the mosque's security before Mr Albanese left the event, the ABC reported.

The Lebanese Muslim Society owns and operates the mosque, which serves as the main venue for most of its events.

While politicians have traditionally made speeches at the event, Mr Albanese was told to simply attend and listen this year, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Lebanese Muslim Society yell at Australian Prime Minister

Members of the Lebanese Muslim Society yelled at the Australian Prime Minister as he left the mosque

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REUTERS

Albanese at mosque

The Australian PM could be seen grimacing as protesters heckled him at the mosque

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REUTERS

He posted photos of him shaking hands and posing for photos with Muslim community members to social media, despite the heckling.

He went on to downplay the chaos on Friday, and told reporters the reception was "incredibly positive".

He said: "I walked through the crowd to the mosque, and not a single person heckled. There were a couple of hecklers inside, they were dealt with.

"Contrary to what’s been suggested, no one was rushed out. We just sat there... it was dealt with by the community themselves because overwhelmingly they did not want that to occur."

Anthony Albanese

'I walked through the crowd to the mosque, and not a single person heckled,' Mr Albanese said

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REUTERS

Lakemba is a traditional Labor Party stronghold but tensions have risen due to the Government's position on the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

More broadly, fury has bubbled among Australia's Muslim community since earlier this year when Israeli President Isaac Herzog visited the country.

Police had to forcibly remove Muslims praying during a protest against Mr Herzog at Sydney's Town Hall.

The Australian Government passed the Combating Anti-Semitism, Hate and Extremism Act in January, which banned Hizb uh-Tahir as a "prohibited hate group".

Critics said the move targeted Muslim dissent and failed to protect against "Islamophobia".

The UK has proscribed Hizb ut-Tahrir, which aims to establish a global caliphate, as a terror group.

It praised the October 7 massacre as the work of "heroes".

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