Australian authorities held a six-month-long investigation into one of the Bondi Beach terrorists for his links to ISIS but determined he wasn’t a threat and allowed his household to keep six firearms.
The Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) investigated 24-year-old Naveed Akram in October 2019 because of his connection to Isaac el Matari, who was arrested that year for planning a terrorist attack as the self-proclaimed leader of the Islamic State in Australia, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported. Matari was part of an ISIS cell in Australia with several other Sydney men who have been convicted of terrorist offenses and were close to Akram, according to ABC.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the investigation but said ASIO determined there was no ongoing threat. Authorities now believe that both Akram and his father, Sajid, had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. Two ISIS flags were found in their vehicle near the attack, one of which was visible on the car’s hood, according to authorities.
Australia’s already strict gun laws failed to prevent Sajid Akram from legally owning six firearms and using them with his son to terrorize a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach, killing at least 15 people and wounding 40 more. Australia requires prospective gun owners to demonstrate a "genuine reason" for ownership—which doesn’t include self-defense—undergo background checks, and comply with strict storage and registration rules. These regulations were enacted in 1996 after 35 people were killed in a mass shooting in Tasmania.
On Monday, Albanese vowed even tougher gun laws in response to the attack. The new measures he proposed include a limit on the number of guns an individual can own and a review of licenses over time.
Albanese came under fire for releasing a statement after the anti-Semitic attack on a Hanukkah celebration in which he made no mention of Jews or anti-Semitism. He was one of several world leaders who recognized a Palestinian state in September, a move that American and Israeli leaders, including President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said would embolden Hamas and its allies after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in Israel.
