Sydney Terror Attack Connection: A big revelation has been made in the Bondi Beach terrorist attack in Australia. The accused, Sajid and Naved Akram, had visited the Philippines before the attack, one holding an Indian passport. The investigation into their ISIS connections has also intensified. Know the whole matter..
Australia Terror Attack Latest Update: As the investigation into the heart-wrenching terrorist attack on Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia is progressing, many important layers are being revealed. It has now come to light that the father and son who carried out this attack had gone to the Philippines a few weeks before the incident. According to reports, during this period one of the accused had traveled on an Indian passport, while the other had traveled on an Australian passport. This revelation is not only important for the investigating agencies, but is also increasing the concern of security agencies at the global level.
Important clues related to Philippines travel
According to the BBC report, Philippines immigration officials have confirmed that the two accused arrived in the Philippines from Sydney on November 1 and returned on November 28. Philippines Immigration Bureau spokeswoman Dana Sandoval said Sajid Akram traveled on an Indian passport, while his son Naved Akram held an Australian passport. Both had named Davao City in the Philippines as their final destination.
Where was Sajid Akram a citizen of?
The Philippines Immigration Bureau has also clarified that Sajid Akram was an Indian citizen and was living in Australia as a permanent resident. Australian Home Minister Tony Burke said that Sajid Akram had reached Australia in 1998 on a student visa. He later obtained a partner visa and continued to travel abroad from time to time on a resident return visa. His son Naved Akram is an Australian-born citizen.
Why did Davao in Philippines become the center of investigation?
Davao is located on the island of Mindanao, in the southern part of the Philippines. This area has been in the news earlier also for the activities of terrorist organizations linked to Islamic State. In 2017, Marawi city in the same region was captured by ISIS-affiliated terrorists, after which military action continued for months. In such a situation, the investigating agencies are trying to find out whether the accused had taken any kind of radical contact or training during this trip. However, the Philippines military has not confirmed any military training at this time.
Diplomatic talks between India and Australia
After the attack, Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong spoke to India’s Foreign Minister S Jaishankar on phone. In this conversation, both countries strongly condemned terrorism and anti-Jewish violence and agreed to cooperate in the investigation. S Jaishankar expressed deep sorrow over the attack by posting on social media and talked about giving all possible support to Australia. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said that preliminary investigations indicate that both the accused were influenced by the ideology of Islamic State. It is believed that fundamentalist thinking played an important role in carrying out this attack. Australian agencies are now investigating the foreign travels, contacts and online activities of the accused.
What happened on Sydney’s Bondi Beach?
On Sunday, December 14, 15 people were killed and more than 42 were injured in a sudden firing during the Hanukkah festival on Sydney’s Bondi Beach. The attackers were identified as 50-year-old Sajid Akram and his 24-year-old son Naved Akram. Sajid Akram was killed in an encounter with the police during the attack, while Naved Akram is hospitalized in an injured condition and is under police surveillance.