Comedian Bassem Youssef postpones Australian tour after authorities ask him to provide background checks

The Egyptian-American comedian Bassem Youssef has announced his imminent Australian tour has been postponed after he was asked to provide background checks as part of his visa application.

Ticketholders for Youssef’s first Australian show, scheduled for Perth on Thursday, received alerts on Tuesday afternoon that the show had been “rescheduled due to circumstances beyond their control” and that new dates would be announced. He had also been scheduled to perform in Sydney and Melbourne.

The comedian has recently attracted criticism from Australian Jewish groups for jokes and commentary about Israel and Palestine, including social media statements calling Israelis “genocidal, brutal, merciless … pieces of shit”.