A Jewish community group warned police a terror attack was likely days before a mass shooting killed 15 people at Bondi Beach, an inquiry says.
SYDNEY: A Jewish community group warned police a terror attack was “likely” just days before two gunmen killed 15 people in a mass shooting at Australia’s Bondi Beach, an inquiry said on Thursday.
Sajid Akram and son Naveed are accused of opening fire as Jewish families thronged Bondi Beach for a Hanukkah celebration in December, carrying out Australia’s deadliest mass shooting for 30 years.
Australia’s Jewish community “was the evident target of the attack”, a high-powered royal commission tasked with investigating the shooting concluded in an interim report.
The report detailed how, just days before the attack, a Jewish volunteer group had warned police about the threat of violence at Hanukkah celebrations.
“A terrorist attack against the NSW Jewish Community is likely and there is a high level of antisemitic vilification,” the Community Security Group wrote in an email released by the inquiry.
The security group said they were told police could not provide dedicated officers for the December 14 festival, but would send mobile patrols to “check in and monitor the event”.
Jewish community leader Alex Ryvchin said organisers were struck by a “general feeling of unrest” ahead of the Hanukkah festival.
“The police are the ones that make decisions around resourcing, and it seems like this was not adequately done,” he told national broadcaster ABC.
“We need to understand why those resourcing decisions were made.”
State premier Chris Minns said he took “responsibility” for failing to protect the victims.
“If we had known what was going to happen, we would have put an army down there.”
Police commissioner Mal Lanyon said officers had considered the information provided by the Jewish group.
“There were police present on that occassion, there had been a risk assessment, and there were certainly roving police throughout the area on that evening.”
The inquiry said police should consider ramping up security arrangements at future Jewish celebrations “that have a public facing element”.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters it was a matter for the New South Wales state government.
He said he would “implement all the recommendations” of the report.
“I can assure the Australian public that the government will do everything necessary to protect the community in the wake of the Bondi attack,” he said.
The federal royal commission — the highest level of government inquiry — has been tasked with probing everything from intelligence failures to the rise of antisemitism in Australia.
It also found that the country’s counter-terrorism capabilities “could be improved”.
Several recommendations related to national security were redacted to protect sensitive information and ongoing investigations.
‘We demand answers’
The mass shooting has sparked national soul-searching about antisemitism and widespread anger over the failure to shield Jewish Australians from harm.
Australia announced a suite of gun law reforms following the shootings, including a nationwide gun buyback scheme.
The buyback scheme has since stalled as the federal government struggles to convince Australia’s states and territories to sign on.
Australia should “prioritise efforts” to get the buyback up and running, the inquiry recommended.
Victims’ families penned an open letter in December urging Albanese to establish the inquiry.
“We demand answers and solutions,” they wrote.
Royal commissions hold public hearings and can sometimes run for years.
The inquiry is led by Virginia Bell, a widely respected former High Court judge.
Alleged gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was shot and killed by police during the assault.
His 24-year-old son Naveed, an Australian-born citizen who remains in prison, has been charged with terrorism and 15 murders.
