Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has publicly praised cricketer Usman Khawaja for his stance in supporting the people of Gaza. The cricketer had attempted to display messages of solidarity with the people of Gaza, including "All lives are equal" and "Freedom is a human right", on his shoes during a recent match against Pakistan. However, he was prevented from doing so by the International Cricket Council (ICC), who said that messages of a political nature were not permitted on players' kit. Khawaja responded by wearing a black arm band instead, for which he was sanctioned by the ICC. The prime minister praised Khawaja for his "courage" in standing up for his principles.