Sajid and Naveed Akram, the father-son terrorists who murdered 15 people at a Chanukah celebration at Bondi Beach on Sunday, traveled to the Philippines to receive “military-style training” only weeks before the attack, according to a report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Investigators are now probing whether the Akrams were part of a wider international jihadist network after determining that the two had traveled to Manila at the beginning of November. A senior counter-terrorism official said that the Akrams traveled from Manila to the southern Philippines for training before returning to Australia in late November.

There are Islamic state-linked networks in the Philippines, mainly in the south of the country.

Manila’s immigration office confirmed that the Akrams spent almost the entire month of November in the Philippines and that Sijad had entered the country as an “Indian national,” AFP reported.

“Sajid Akram, 50, an Indian national, and Naveed Akram, 24, an Australian national, arrived in the Philippines together on November 1, 2025 from Sydney, Australia,” immigration spokeswoman Dana Sandoval told AFP, adding they left the country on November 28.

The disclosure follows an earlier ABC report stating that Naveed had longstanding connections to figures within Australia’s pro-Islamic State (ISIS) network, including the notorious jihadist preacher Wisam Haddad and convicted ISIS youth recruiter Youssef Uweinat.

Meanwhile, Israeli intelligence officials believe that the massacre was planned by a foreign terrorist cell backed by Iran, the British Telegraph reported.

According to the report, the way the attack was executed points to characteristics associated with a Hezbollah unit responsible for operations outside Lebanon. Israel is also examining potential links to Hamas and other terrorist organizations.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)