Bondi gunmen were inspired by Islamic State, had travelled to the Philippines, Australia police say

Two alleged gunmen who attacked a Hanukkah event at Sydney's Bondi Beach had travelled to the Philippines before the assault which killed 15 people and appeared to be inspired by Islamic State, police said on Tuesday.

The attack on Sunday was Australia's worst mass shooting in nearly 30 years, and is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting the Jewish community.

The death toll stands at 16 including one of the alleged gunmen, identified by police as Sajid Akram, 50, who was shot by police. The man's 24-year-old son and alleged accomplice, identified by local media as Naveed Akram, was in critical condition in hospital after also being shot.

Australian police said on Tuesday both men had travelled to the Philippines last month and the purpose of the trip is under investigation. Philippines immigration officials said both men travelled to Manila and onward to Davao on November 1 and left on November 28, just weeks before the Bondi shooting.

The father travelled on an Indian passport, while the son was on an Australian passport, officials said.

Islamic state-linked networks are known to operate in the Philippines and have wielded some influence in the south of the country. They have been reduced to weakened cells operating in the southern Mindanao island in recent years, far from the scale of influence they wielded during the 2017 Marawi siege.

Police also said the vehicle which is registered to the younger male contained improvised explosive devices and two homemade flags associated with ISIS, or Islamic State, a militant group designated by Australia and many other countries as a terrorist organisation.

The father and son allegedly fired upon hundreds of people at the festival during a roughly 10-minute killing spree at one of Australia's top tourist destinations, forcing people to flee and take shelter before both were shot by police.

Videos have emerged of the younger shooter preaching Islam outside train stations in suburban Sydney. Authorities are still trying to piece together how he went down the path of violence.

Reuters