Sydney Muslim cleric tells court Jewish people can’t be offended by him calling them ‘vile’ as lectures were private

Wissam Haddad, also known as Abu Ousayd, argues speeches in which he is alleged to have maligned Jewish people were delivered to a Muslim audience

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A Sydney Muslim cleric being sued for alleged racial discrimination has told the federal court no Jewish person could be offended over a series of lectures in which he described Jewish people in the seventh century as mischievous", treacherous" and vile" because the lectures were delivered to a private Muslim audience.

While giving evidence to the federal court on Wednesday, Wissam Haddad was taken to evidence of his own advertisements on Instagram, promoting several of the speeches, and which included the words: the lecture will be recorded and then uploaded on YouTube".