Father and Son Identified as Suspects in Attack on Australian Hanukkah Festival

Dec 15, 2025 at 09:19 AM

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Lanka Leader

Australian police have identified a father and son as the suspects in a deadly attack targeting members of the Jewish community during a Hanukkah celebration in Australia.

The Queensland Police Service said the two men opened fire on a gathering celebrating the first day of Hanukkah at Bondi Beach, a suburb of Sydney, on Saturday (14). At least 16 people were killed and many others injured. Authorities are treating the incident as an act of terrorism.

The suspects were named as Sajid Akram and his son, Naveed Akram. New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters that Sajid Akram died at the scene, while Naveed Akram was taken to hospital in good but stable condition. Lanyon said Sajid Akram legally owned six firearms.

“Authorities had little prior knowledge of these individuals,” Lanyon said.

Australia’s public broadcaster, ABC News, reported that counter-terrorism investigators believe the Akrams had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS). Police said an IS flag was found inside the suspects’ vehicle.

Australia’s domestic intelligence agency, ASIO, confirmed that Naveed Akram had been investigated six years ago for links to an IS sympathiser. He was arrested in 2019 and later imprisoned for planning a terrorist attack. ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess said the suspect was known to the agency but was not considered an immediate threat.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the attack, calling it “an evil act of antisemitism and terrorism that strikes at the heart of our nation.”

“An attack on Jewish Australians is an attack on every Australian,” he said.

Israeli officials and Jewish groups have previously accused Australia of unfairly criticising Israel over the Gaza conflict and of failing to do enough to combat antisemitism.