Cricketer Usman Khawaja outraged after Australian sports radio fires commentator over Gaza solidarity

Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja voiced his anger after a popular sports radio network in his country fired renowned commentator Peter Lalor for criticising Israel’s genocide in Gaza on social media.

Taking to Instagram, Khawaja asserted that labeling criticism of Israel as "anti-Semitic" is unjustified and does not target the Jewish community.

“Standing up for the people of Gaza is not anti-Semitic nor does it have anything to do with my Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia but everything to do with the Israeli government and their deplorable actions,” his Instagram story read.

He further stated that both Jewish and Muslim communities continue to face "hatred" and defended Peter Lalor, saying, “He deserves better.”

Renowned cricket writer Peter Lalor was dismissed by his employer, SEN Radio Network, for expressing his support for Palestinians in Gaza. Lalor had worked with the network for 10 years.

His dismissal came during Australia’s tour to Sri Lanka for a Test series.

In a message on the Substack app, Lalor said, “I figured, at some point, there would be an attempt to take me down, and it has happened.”

“I was told there were accusations I was antisemitic, which I strongly objected to. I was told my retweeting was not balanced, and insensitive to one side, and that many people had complained,” he added.

Lalor revealed that his station boss, Craig Hutchison, questioned him about his reposting of pro-Palestinian content on X, suggesting it might have made Jewish people in Australia “feel unsafe.”

“I said I didn’t want to make anyone feel unsafe. Of course, I care. I have friends who are frightened and have heard the fear in their voices during conversations. It was an awful situation. But so is Gaza. It was a brief and cordial call,” Lalor said.

Following this conversation, his boss informed him that he would no longer cover matches for the network.