One of the Bondi Beach gunmen, 24-year-old Naveed Akram, came to the attention of Australia’s domestic intelligence agency six years ago for his close ties to a Sydney-based Islamic State terrorism cell, ABC News Australia reported Monday.
Naveed and his father, Sajid Akram, 50, killed 15 people on Sunday evening when they opened fire on the “Chanukah by the Sea” event celebrating the first day of the Jewish festival.
The attack on more than 1,000 people gathered at Bondi Beach’s Archer Park around 6:47 p.m. local time marks the second-worst mass shooting in Australia since the massacre in 1996 in Port Arthur, a tourist town in the Australian state of Tasmania.
Naveed Akram is in the hospital under police guard; his father, Sajid, was shot dead in an exchange of gunfire with police.
At least 27 victims were hospitalized, New South Wales Health said on Monday, including six people in critical condition, six in critical but stable condition, and 13 in stable condition. At least 40 people were injured overall in the attack, according to police.
Two police officers with gunshot wounds were among those injured during the shooting.
‘Operation Shelter’ and gunman’s background
New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said 328 police officers would be dispatched to places of worship on Monday as part of “Operation Shelter.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed that Naveed Akram first came to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation’s (ASIO) attention in October 2019 and was under investigation for six months, but there was an assessment that he posed no ongoing threat.
Australia’s ABC News reported that the younger Akram was closely connected to an Islamic State cell member now serving seven years in jail for planning an IS insurgency.
Lanyon said Sajid Akram had been a licensed firearms holder for the past 10 years, with six weapons in his possession, all of which were recovered from the scene.
A 43-year-old fruit-shop owner, Ahmed al-Ahmed, tackled one gunman from behind, wrestling away his weapon and turning it on the shooter. NSW Premier Chris Minns called it “the most unbelievable scene” he had seen.
Two improvised explosive devices were removed from a car on nearby Campbell Parade.
Albanese, Netanyahu trade barbs
“What we saw yesterday was an act of pure evil, an act of antisemitism, an act of terrorism on our shores at an iconic Australian location,” Albanese said on Monday. "[Bondi Beach is] associated with joy, associated with families gathering, associated with celebrations. And it is forever tarnished by what has occurred last evening.”
Responding to a reporter’s question about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s critical remarks directed at him following Sunday’s attack, Albanese said that “this is a moment for national unity. This is a moment for Australians to come together. That’s precisely what we will be doing.”
Albanese was also asked if there was a “failure that these men weren’t seriously on the radar,” to which he replied that the authorities are doing an “extraordinary job,” echoing Lanyon’s comments that investigations have already made progress. “The fact that there were raids on Bonnie, the home in Bonnyrigg, and at Campsie last night. We will continue to provide every resource possible to the AFP [Australian Federal Police], as well as to our intelligence and security agencies.”
Netanyahu said that on Aug. 17, he sent Albanese a letter warning that Canberra’s policy “was promoting and encouraging antisemitism in Australia.” The premier wrote that “your call for a Palestinian state pours fuel on the antisemitic fire. It rewards Hamas terrorism. It emboldens those who menace Australian Jews and encourages the Jew-hatred now stalking your streets. Antisemitism is a cancer. It spreads when leaders stay silent. It retreats when leaders act. I call upon you to replace weakness with action, appeasement with resolve.”
Nine victims identified so far
Authorities and families have identified nine of the 15 victims killed in Sunday’s terror attack, according to Sky News Australia.
Rabbi Eli Schlanger, 41, a British-born assistant rabbi at Chabad Bondi who organized the event, was among the dead. He had lived in Sydney for 18 years and recently became a father for the fifth time.
Peter Meagher, a retired police officer at the event who was working as a freelance photographer, was killed, said his rugby team, Randwick Rugby Club.
French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed that Dan Elkayam, a French citizen in his late 20s, reportedly employed at NBC Universal in Sydney, died in the attack.
A 10-year-old primary school student identified only as Matilda, described by her aunt as “a bright, joyful, and spirited child who brought light to those around her,” was also killed.
Reuven Morrison, a member of the Chabad community who divided his time between Melbourne and Sydney, was also killed, the organization said.
Alex Kleytman, 87, a Holocaust survivor—who attended the event with his wife, Larisa, also a Holocaust survivor, along with their children and grandchildren—died in the shooting.
Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, secretary of the Sydney Jewish religious organization Beth Din, was identified among the victims.
Tibor Weitzen was fatally wounded while shielding his wife from gunfire, the Daily Mail reported. His wife survived.
Marika Pogany, 82, a Hungarian-born grandmother and community volunteer, was named as a victim of the Chanukah shooting. She was remembered as a loyal friend and active member of Sydney’s Jewish community.
