Counterterrorism authorities have verified to Australian news site ABC that Sajid and Naveed Akram – the father-son gunmen who slaughtered 15 people at a Bondi Beach Hanukkah gathering – underwent "military-style training" in the Philippines during the month preceding their attack.
The disclosure follows ABC's documentation of extensive connections between 24-year-old Naveed Akram and Australia's pro-Islamic State network, including associations with extremist cleric Wisam Haddad and imprisoned youth recruiter Youssef Uweinat, according to ABC.
Legal counsel for Haddad stated he "vehemently denies any knowledge of or involvement in the shootings that took place at Bondi Beach," ABC reported. Authorities are examining the Akrams' links to international jihadist networks after establishing their early November arrival in Manila, case-briefed officials disclosed to ABC.
The duo subsequently journeyed to the southern Philippines for terrorist training, a senior counter-terrorism official confirmed anonymously to ABC. Late November marked their return to Australia – mere weeks before Sunday's beachfront slaughter, officials told ABC.
Since the early 1990s, the Philippines has functioned as a terrorist hub, hosting training facilities relocated from the Pakistan-Afghanistan border to southern Mindanao, ABC reported. Security sources have withheld specific location and movement details regarding the pair's time in the southern Philippines, according to ABC.
ASIO, the nation's intelligence service, investigated Naveed Akram in 2019 over his Sydney-based IS terrorist cell associations, ABC revealed Monday.
Ahmed, you are an Australian hero.
You put yourself at risk to save others, running towards danger on Bondi Beach and disarming a terrorist.
In the worst of times, we see the best of Australians. And that's exactly what we saw on Sunday night.
On behalf of every Australian, I… pic.twitter.com/mAoObU3TZD
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) December 16, 2025
The then-18-year-old displayed "indications of intent" and concerning connections prompting ASIO's 2019 investigation, though additional scrutiny was deemed unwarranted then, a senior security source told ABC. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese informed the 7.30 program Monday evening that ASIO's six-month probe uncovered "no evidence" of radicalization in either father or son, ABC reported.
Neither man appeared on terrorism watchlists before the assault, and licensed gun owner Sajid Akram encountered no legal barriers to firearm possession, according to ABC.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, questioned on Radio National today about whether the Philippines travel alerted national security agencies, provided no direct answer, ABC reported. Burke observed that following ASIO's 2019 inquiry, "there was a radical change in the risk profile of that individual," according to ABC.
Two Islamic State flags discovered in the Akrams' Bondi Beach vehicle led investigators to conclude the pair had pledged allegiance to the terrorist group, ABC disclosed Monday.
