Police say father and son targeted Jewish festival in Australia’s deadliest shooting in nearly 30 years
Australian police said on Tuesday that Sajid Akram, one of the two men accused of attacking a Hanukkah event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, had travelled to the Philippines on an Indian passport, while the second suspect, Naveed Akram, travelled on an Australian passport.
The two men were in the Philippines between November 1 and 28, Australian police said on Tuesday, adding that the purpose of the trip was under investigation. Police have said the attack, which killed 15 people, appeared to be inspired by Islamic State, and that the suspects reportedly received military-style training during their stay.
The attack on Sunday was Australia’s worst mass shooting in nearly 30 years and is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting the Jewish community.
The death toll stands at 16, including one of the alleged gunmen identified by police as Sajid Akram, 50, who was shot dead by police. The man’s 24-year-old son and alleged accomplice, identified by local media as Naveed Akram, remains in critical condition in hospital after also being shot.
Islamic State-linked networks are known to operate in the Philippines and have wielded influence in the country’s south. These networks have since been reduced to weakened cells operating mainly in Mindanao, far from the scale of influence they held during the 2017 Marawi siege.
“Early indications point to a terrorist attack inspired by Islamic State, allegedly committed by a father and son,” Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said at a news conference.
“These are the alleged actions of those who have aligned themselves with a terrorist organisation, not a religion.”
Police said the vehicle registered to the younger man contained improvised explosive devices and two homemade flags associated with ISIS, a militant group designated as a terrorist organisation by Australia and many other countries.
The father and son allegedly fired on hundreds of people at the festival during a roughly 10-minute killing spree at one of Australia’s top tourist destinations, forcing people to flee and take shelter before both were shot by police.
Some 25 survivors are receiving treatment in several Sydney hospitals, officials said.
Memorial of flowers
Israeli Ambassador Amir Maimon visited Bondi on Tuesday and urged the Australian government to take all required steps to secure the lives of Jews in Australia.
“Only Australians of Jewish faith are forced to worship their gods behind closed doors, CCTV, guards,” Maimon told reporters in Bondi, after laying flowers at the temporary memorial and paying his respects to the victims.
“My heart is torn apart … it is insane.”
A string of antisemitic incidents in Australia has unfolded in the past 16 months, prompting the head of the nation’s main intelligence agency to declare that antisemitism was his top priority in terms of threat to life.
At Bondi, the beach was open on Tuesday but was largely empty under overcast skies, as a growing memorial of flowers was established at the Bondi Pavilion, metres from the location of the shootings.
Read: 11 killed, dozen injured in shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach
Bondi is Sydney’s best-known beach, located about 8.2 km (5 miles) from the city centre, and draws hundreds of thousands of international tourists each year.
Olivia Robertson, 25, visited the memorial before work.
“This is the country that our grandparents have come to for us to feel safe and to have opportunity,” she said.
“And now this has happened right here in our backyard. It’s pretty shocking.”
Ahmed al Ahmed, the 43-year-old Muslim father-of-two who charged at one of the gunmen and seized his rifle, remains in a Sydney hospital with gunshot wounds. He has been hailed as a hero around the world, including by U.S. President Donald Trump.
A GoFundMe campaign set up for Ahmed has raised more than A$1.9 million ($1.26 million).
Tougher gun laws
Australia’s gun laws are now under review after police revealed Sajid Akram was a licensed gun owner with six registered weapons. Police clarified on Tuesday that Akram received his gun licence in 2023, not 2015 as previously stated.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said gun laws introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre needed to be re-examined.
Former Liberal prime minister John Howard, who introduced the gun restrictions, said he did not want gun law reform to become a “diversion” from tackling antisemitism.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had let the Jewish community down, Howard said. “He should have done more to fight antisemitism, a lot more.”
The 15 victims ranged from a rabbi who was a father of five to a Holocaust survivor and a 10-year-old girl, Matilda Britvan, according to officials and media reports. Two police officers remain in critical but stable condition, New South Wales police said.
Matilda’s aunt spoke publicly about the family’s grief. “I am beyond belief that this happened,” Lina Chernykh told 7NEWS Australia. Further adding he said, “I look at the phone and hope it’s a big joke — not real.”
