Australia revokes tennis star Novak Djokovic's visa over COVID vaccine row

Australia has cancelled  tennis star Novak Djokovic's visa for a second time in a row over his right to remain in the country unvaccinated. The decision by Immigration Minister Alex Hawke means Djokovic now faces being deported. The men's tennis number one was scheduled to play in the Australian Open, which begins on Monday. "Today I exercised my power... to cancel the visa held by Mr Novak Djokovic on health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so," the minister said in a statement. The move also means Djokovic likely faces a three-year ban on obtaining a new Australian visa.

For the unversed, Djokovic's visa was first revoked shortly after his arrival in Melbourne on 6 January, after Australian border Force officials said he had "failed to provide appropriate evidence" to receive a vaccine exemption. There was also enormous backlash from the Australian public, who have lived under some of the world's longest and strictest lockdowns during the pandemic. He was detained, spent hours at immigration control at the airport and then spent days at an immigration hotel. Days later his visa was reinstated by a judge, who ordered his release, ruling that border officials ignored correct procedure when he arrived. But on Friday evening in Melbourne, Mr Hawke cancelled Djokovic's visa under separate powers in Australia's Migration Act. The act allows him to deport anyone he deems a potential risk to "the health, safety or good order of the Australian community", however Djokovic can still appeal this.