Naveed Akram, the surviving attacker in the Bondi Beach terror strike, has regained consciousness after being in a coma and was formally arrested by Australian police at his hospital bedside. Authorities had been waiting for doctors to confirm that he was mentally alert and capable of understanding legal procedures before taking him into custody. Naveed has now been charged with terrorism and multiple counts of murder following the deadliest terror attack on Australian soil in three decades.
According to Australian media reports, the 25-year-old was arrested shortly after he emerged from a comatose state caused by gunshot injuries sustained during the police operation. Detectives remained on standby until medical professionals determined that the effects of sedation had sufficiently worn off and that Naveed was cognitively fit to be cautioned and arrested under Australian law.
Naveed Akram and his father, Sajid Akram, carried out the mass shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday, targeting a Jewish Hanukkah celebration attended by hundreds of people. The attack resulted in the deaths of 15 civilians and left at least 40 others injured, making it one of the most devastating terrorist incidents in Australia’s recent history.
Following his arrest, Naveed was charged with a total of 59 offences. These include one count of committing a terrorist act, 15 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder through wounding, one count related to planting an explosive device near a building, a charge for firing a weapon with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and another for the public display of a terrorist symbol.
While Naveed survived, his father, Sajid Akram, aged 50, was shot dead by police during the operation to neutralise the attackers. Investigations revealed that Sajid was originally from Hyderabad and had migrated to Australia in 1998. Despite holding an Indian passport, he had minimal contact with his family in India and had returned only six times over a span of 27 years.
Sajid Akram married a European Christian woman after settling in Australia, and the couple had two children, Naveed and a daughter, both born in the country. Family members in India later told media outlets that they had severed ties with Sajid years earlier due to his marriage outside the faith and his prolonged absence from family life.
Australian police confirmed that Naveed regained consciousness on Tuesday afternoon local time. Media reports stated that upon waking, he found detectives present in his hospital room, ready to take him into custody once doctors confirmed his mental clarity. New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said officers acted only after ensuring that Naveed was fully capable of understanding the arrest process.
The attackers used rifles and shotguns to fire indiscriminately at festival-goers, killing victims ranging in age from 10 to 87 years old. Among those killed were a Holocaust survivor and a London-born rabbi. Authorities also confirmed that three Indian international students were injured in the attack, with at least two continuing to receive hospital treatment.
Further investigations revealed that the father-son duo had travelled to the Philippines between November 1 and November 28, raising concerns among intelligence agencies. Officials are probing whether the two may have met extremist Islamic preachers or undergone some form of ideological or tactical indoctrination during the trip.
According to a BBC report quoting Philippine officials, Sajid Akram travelled using an Indian passport, while Naveed used an Australian passport. Despite these international links, the Telangana Police in India stated that there was no evidence suggesting that the radicalisation of Sajid or Naveed had any connection to India or any local influence in the state.
The investigation into the planning, motivation and international connections behind the Bondi Beach attack is ongoing, as Australian authorities work to piece together the full extent of the terror network and prevent future threats.
