Australian leader says terror attack motivated by ISIS as new info emerges

1 day ago 6

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Tuesday that the begetter and lad suspects successful the antisemitic panic onslaught connected a Hanukkah gathering connected Bondi Beach were inspired by ISIS, arsenic Indian officials confirmed that the older antheral was from the monolithic Asian nation.

Authorities besides revealed that gunmen had precocious returned from the Philippines, wherever they traveled to an country known arsenic a hotbed for violent groups.

The wide shooting connected the celebrated formation left 15 guiltless radical dead, including a 10-year-old miss and an Holocaust survivor, and was "motivated by Islamic State ideology," Albanese said Tuesday arsenic helium visited 1 of the heroes who tried to halt the attackers.

Australia's national constabulary commissioner Krissy Barrett besides said Tuesday that it was "a violent onslaught inspired by Islamic State," referring to the present disparate radical that, for respective years, held a immense swathe of territory spanning the Syria-Iraq border.

The suspects, a begetter and lad aged 50 and 24, utilized guns owned legally by the older man, whom officials successful New South Wales authorities person named arsenic Sajid Akram. He was changeable dormant astatine the scene, and his lad was inactive being treated successful a infirmary connected Tuesday, wherever Australian nationalist broadcaster ABC said helium had regained consciousness.

Indian constabulary corroborate begetter was from Hyderabad

Police successful the confederate Indian authorities of Telangana confirmed successful a connection connected Tuesday that Sajid Akram was primitively from the metropolis of Hyderabad. In a statement, the constabulary said helium earned a grade successful Hyderabad earlier migrating to Australia successful November 1998, wherever helium joined a pistillate of European origin.

Sajid Akram held an Indian passport, portion his lad Naveed and a girl were some calved successful Australia and are citizens of the country, the constabulary said, confirming erstwhile statements by Australian officials astir the son's nationality. U.S. officials had told CBS News soon aft the onslaught that astatine slightest 1 of the Akrams was believed to beryllium a Pakistani national, but that appears to person been a lawsuit of mistaken identity, and a antheral with the aforesaid sanction arsenic the younger fishy has travel guardant successful Sydney to accidental helium was wrongly identified.

The Telangana constabulary said the elder Akram had "limited interaction with his household successful Hyderabad implicit the past 27 years," visiting six times since helium migrated to Australia, "primarily for family-related reasons."

The constabulary connection said household members successful India had "expressed nary cognition of his extremist mindset oregon activities, nor of the circumstances that led to his radicalization, and that the son's evident radicalization appeared "to person nary transportation with India."

Australian officials person confirmed that homemade ISIS flags were recovered — on with an improvised explosive instrumentality — successful the suspects' conveyance astatine Bondi Beach connected Sunday, and constabulary provided caller accusation connected Tuesday astir their caller movements.

Suspected gunmen spent astir of November successful the Philippines

Both men traveled to the Philippines successful November, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters connected Tuesday, adding that investigators were inactive looking into the reasons for the travel and wherever precisely the men went.

The Philippines Bureau of Immigration said some Sajid Akram and his son, identified wide by Australian media arsenic Naveed Akram, spent astir of November — from the 1st until the 28th — successful the Philippines, and listing the metropolis of Davao arsenic their last destination.  

Muslim separatists, including the Islamist Abu Sayyaf group that erstwhile publically backed ISIS, are progressive successful that portion of the confederate Philippines. ABC, the Australian nationalist broadcaster, said the men had undergone "military-style training" successful the Philippines, citing information sources.

That radical and others successful the portion person drawn and trained immoderate overseas militants from crossed Asia, the Middle East and Europe successful the past, according to the Associated Press, though Abu Sayyaf has been weakened successful caller years by repeated subject offensives.

The AP cited Philippine subject and constabulary officials arsenic saying determination has been nary caller denotation of immoderate overseas militants operating successful the southbound of the country.

Did Australian officials neglect the Jewish community?

Australian officials confirmed Monday that Naveed Akram was nether probe for astir six months during 2019 for suspected links to a Sydney-based panic cell, though the nation's superior spy bureau recovered helium represented nary threat, and officials said the probe had focused connected associates.

ABC reported that his ties included "longstanding links" to members of a pro-ISIS compartment successful Australia, including interaction with alleged jihadist spiritual person Wisam Haddad and a antheral named Youssef Uweinat, who was convicted of recruiting young radical successful Australia to Islamic extremism.

A lawyer for Haddad has denied that the cleric had "any cognition of oregon engagement successful the shootings that took spot astatine Bondi Beach," according to ABC.

Many people, from the daughter of 1 of the victims, to a erstwhile Australian leader, person told CBS News the men's past should person raised superior reddish flags, if not stopped them earlier they claimed truthful galore lives.

Israeli officials person harshly criticized Australia's authorities for failing to support Jewish radical amid a crisp emergence successful caller years of antisemitic incidents.

Mass Shooting At Sydney's Bondi Beach Police acceptable up a cordon astatine the country of a wide shooting astatine Bondi Beach, Dec. 14, 2025 successful Sydney, Australia. George Chan/Getty

"We are present facing present a surge of antisemitism, and Australians of Jewish religion are not feeling unafraid successful their ain country, and this is insane," Israeli Ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon told CBS News connected Tuesday, urging Australian leaders to make opportunities for young radical of antithetic faiths to travel together, "and not erstwhile a year, but connected a play basis."

Maimon besides said "boundaries should beryllium set" by Australian authorities, referring to pro-Palestinian demonstrations that person been held successful the country.

"I judge that it's precise important to marque definite that portion the rule of state of look should beryllium kept, determination should beryllium besides a bounds to the connection that immoderate protesters, and successful immoderate protests, we hear," helium said. "I ever judge that determination is country to bash more. Always. I'm asking myself each day, 'what tin I bash better? How tin I bash better?' And I'm trying to bash it. And I bash expect the Australian authorities to bash better."

Former Australian person says determination are nary casual answers

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told CBS News connected Tuesday that the nationalist authorities undoubtedly had immoderate precise large questions to answer, but helium stressed that quality gathering – for each nations – is an imperfect science.

"This benignant of coercion has been, the elements of that, person been contiguous successful Australia for a agelong time, and our agencies walk a batch of clip keeping an oculus connected them, but it's hard to way each azygous person," said Turnbull, who was Australian premier curate from 2015 to 2018.

"Certainly, it's a precise large question: Why does idiosyncratic surviving successful the suburbs of Sydney request six agelong arms, arsenic helium [Sajid Akram] had, adjacent though they were licensed? Second question is, wherefore were they licensed to a antheral who had a lad who had been connected an ASIO [Australian Security Intelligence Organization] watchlist due to the fact that of links to ISIS-related entities?  … And that travel to the Philippines raises different question: Why were they there? And so, you know, this gets backmost to the occupation that I deliberation we look each astir the world, is databases talking to each other? Are we really putting each the dots unneurotic successful time?"

2017-07-29t235608z-1392997468-rc1f169e8e00-rtrmadp-3-australia-security-raids.jpg Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull speaks during a quality league successful Sydney, Australia, successful a July 30, 2017 record photo.  AAP/Sam Mooy/via Reuters

"There are holes successful everybody's quality gathering," Turnbull said. "But arsenic you know, the violent lone has to beryllium close once. The information agencies person to beryllium close each time."

Regarding the crisp disapproval levelled by galore successful the Jewish community, successful particular, implicit perceived failings successful detecting the menace posed by the suspects, and besides successful sufficiently protecting the pre-planned Jewish lawsuit connected Bondi Beach, Turnbull said helium wasn't definite however overmuch much could person been done by his successor Albanese.

"I've been premier minister, right? And I'm connected the other broadside of politics, truthful I'm not trying to beryllium partisan astir this, but I conflict to spot what helium could person done that was different. I mean determination person been radical saying helium shouldn't person allowed pro-Palestine marches. Well, you know, we bash person state of assembly and state of code successful Australia. I mean we person restrictions successful Australia connected speech, connected hatred speech, and connected guns, successful particular."

"When I inquire people, they volition accidental helium should person condemned antisemitism much often. Well, I've ne'er heard him bash thing different than condemn it, but my question truly is to say, what would quality would that person made? To those terrorists, you know, they're not going to perceive to a lecture connected the evils of anti-Semitism from you oregon maine oregon Anthony Albanese."

"Remember, coercion is simply a governmental act, right? So, you've got to effort to interrupt radical being radicalized, peculiarly young men, it's the astir susceptible group, and that involves monitoring what is being said online, what they're being taught, you know, successful schools oregon successful mosques oregon successful different places. And the quality agencies are doing that each the time," helium said. 

Arshad R. Zargar contributed to this report.

Read Entire Article