Police allege Bondi shooters trained tactically in the countryside, recorded an ISIS video, and scouted the beach before the deadly attack.
SYDNEY: Two suspects in last week’s deadly Bondi Beach mass shooting conducted tactical firearms training in the countryside, police alleged in court documents.
Father and son Sajid Akram and Naveed are accused of targeting a Hanukkah event, killing 15 people in Australia’s deadliest mass shooting in nearly 30 years.
Authorities released pictures showing the accused firing shotguns and moving in what was described as a “tactical manner” during the training.
Police said the pair also recorded a video in October railing against “Zionists” while sitting in front of an Islamic State group flag, detailing their attack motivations.
Documents showed they made a nighttime reconnaissance trip to Bondi Beach just days before the killings.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vowed to push for tough new laws creating “an aggravated offence for hate preaching”.
“We’re not going to let the ISIS inspired terrorists win,” Albanese told reporters on Monday.
He expressed sorrow for what the Jewish community and the nation had experienced, pledging to protect Jewish Australians’ right to practice their faith.
The federal government has flagged reforms to gun ownership and hate speech laws, alongside a review of police and intelligence services.
Albanese announced a sweeping gun buyback scheme last week, the largest since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
The New South Wales government recalled parliament to introduce what it called the “toughest firearm reforms in the country”.
New rules will cap individual gun ownership at four firearms, or ten for exempted individuals like farmers, in a state with over 1.1 million registered guns.
The legislation would also ban the display of “terrorist symbols”, including the Islamic State flag found in a car linked to an alleged shooter.
Authorities will gain power to prohibit protests for up to three months following a terrorism incident.
Sajid Akram, 50, was shot and killed by police during the attack, while his 24-year-old son Naveed was moved from hospital to jail on Monday.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said he would also look into stricter hate speech laws next year, including restrictions on the phrase “globalise the intifada”.
