Australian teen who egged senator hailed online as 'heroic'

An Australian teen who egged a far-right senator over his offensive comments about the Christchurch mosque attacks has been hailed as "heroic" by internet users, who have raised thousands of dollars in support of his protest.

William Connolly, now better known as "Eggboy", cracked an egg over Fraser Anning's head at a press conference in Melbourne Saturday, prompting the senator to hit him in the face repeatedly.

The controversial politician had a day earlier triggered outrage by claiming the attack in New Zealand that killed 50 people at two mosques was the result of Muslim immigration to the country.

Connolly's act has spawned viral memes and drawn support from social media users around the world, with one setting up a GoFundMe page which quickly raised Aus$44,000 (US$31,000) to cover "legal fees" and "more eggs".

An update to the page, which could not be verified, said "EggBoi (Will) plans to send a majority of the money to the victims of the Christchurch terrorist attack".

"I donated for his heroic act in front of bigotry and racism. What he did is very inspiring for a young kid," wrote one supporter, Mohamed Majrad.

Another simply wrote: "VIVA EGG BOI!"