Australian police yesterday charged one of the alleged Bondi Beach gunmen with murder and terrorism, as grief-stricken mourners buried the first of 15 people slain in the attack.
Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed, are accused of opening fire on a Jewish festival at the famed surf beach on Sunday evening, killing 15 people in a shooting spree inspired by the Islamic State (ISIS) group.
Naveed Akram was charged with 15 counts of murder after waking from a coma, as well as committing a “terrorist act” and planting a bomb with intent to harm.
Photo: AFP
“Police will allege in court the man engaged in conduct that caused death, serious injury and endangered life to advance a religious cause and cause fear in the community,” the New South Wales Police Force said in a statement. “Early indications point to a terrorist attack inspired by ISIS, a listed terrorist organization in Australia.”
Sajid Akram, 50, was killed at the scene in a shoot-out with police. Naveed Akram, 24, was also shot and remained in hospital under police guard.
Authorities said the attack was designed to sow panic among the nation’s Jews.
Australian police are investigating whether the pair met with Islamist extremists during a visit to the Philippines weeks before the shooting.
The Philippines yesterday said there was no evidence that the country was being used for “terrorist training.”
Mourners collapsed in grief as they held the first funerals for those slain in the attack.
Rabbi Eli Schlanger was the first laid to rest, drawing masses of black-clad mourners who spilled out of the Chabad of Bondi Synagogue in Sydney’s east.
Two young women howled with sorrow as they flung themselves on the father-of-five’s casket that was draped with a black velvet cloth bearing the Star of David.
“You’re my son, my friend and confidant,” father-in-law Yehoram Ulman told the funeral, choking back tears. “To think I will go a day without you, it doesn’t seem possible.”
The 41-year-old was a popular figure known to many around town as the “rabbi of Bondi.”
He served as a chaplain in prisons and hospitals, according to the Hasidic Chabad movement.
“This loss is massive for the entire Jewish nation, but for our community here, and for Chabad of Bondi, the loss is unspeakable,” rabbi Levi Wolff told the funeral.
Squads of police patrolled the streets outside the Bondi synagogue, marshalling the large crowds gathered for the service.
Those unable to cram inside huddled together on the street to watch on their cellphones.
“My heart goes out to the community today and every day,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. “But today particularly will be a difficult day with the first funerals under way.”
Mourners later crammed into a suburban chapel for the funeral of rabbi Yaakov Levitan.
Levitan was a father of four renowned for his charitable work, the Chabad movement said.
Among the other victims were a 10-year-old girl, two Holocaust survivors, and a married couple shot and killed as they tried to thwart the attack.
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
RSS