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ASIO was told about Bondi shooter's terrorist links years before attack, former spy claims

Sean Rubinsztein-Dunlop and Kyle Taylor - 9 February 2026

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A former undercover agent has made explosive claims that he shared intelligence with Australia's spy agency, ASIO, about gunman Naveed Akram's terrorist associations and alleged radicalisation, six years before the Bondi Beach attack.

ASIO investigated the information in 2019 but said it could not substantiate it, concluding Akram, then a teenager, did not present a terrorism threat or subscribe to violent extremist ideology.

Four Corners has traced the interactions of Naveed Akram and his father, Sajid, with Australian authorities and Islamic State (IS) extremists in the years before they killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration on December 14.

A former undercover agent, codenamed Marcus, has told the program he is willing to give evidence to the royal commission that he reported to ASIO in 2019 that both Naveed and Sajid Akram supported IS.

ASIO interviewed both father and son as part of a six-month investigation into Naveed Akram, which assessed the teenager was not a terrorist threat or IS supporter.

The agency also found no evidence that Sajid Akram was radicalised, according to comments from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in December.

Sajid Akram was later granted a firearms licence and the pair travelled to a former Islamic State hotspot in the Philippines, without triggering an alert, in the lead-up to the attack.

From the age of 17, Naveed Akram associated with members of a terror cell and acolytes of radical cleric Wisam Haddad, a spiritual leader of Australia's pro-IS network.

Naveed was in contact with several men who were later convicted of terrorism offences, including the self-declared commander of IS in Australia, Isaac El Matari, and IS youth recruiter Youssef Uweinat.

The terrorists were monitored by Marcus, who posed as their imam and teacher.

Marcus told Four Corners he reported to ASIO that El Matari discussed his plans with Naveed to carry out attacks in Sydney.

"What happened on Bondi Beach was a result of a set of errors and a disregard for information," Marcus said.

"How [could] someone like this [have] fled out of ASIO and Australian authorities' radar?"

ASIO told Four Corners the claims were investigated and "found to be unsubstantiated".

It said Marcus "misidentified Naveed Akram".

"ASIO investigated Naveed Akram in 2019, using our most sensitive capabilities," ASIO said in a statement.

"We assessed he did not adhere to or intend to engage in violent extremism at that time.

"Having reviewed all available intelligence, we stand by our assessment at that point in time.

"The source claimed Naveed Akram said and did things that were actually said and done by an entirely different person … Therefore, the associated claims are untrue."

Marcus described ASIO's claim as "false and unsubstantiated".

"I strongly deny ASIO's allegation that I ever misidentified Naveed Akram, someone I met on a regular, face-to-face basis over many years."

ASIO declined to respond to further questions and requests for clarification.

It said it was constrained by an ongoing investigation, court case and the royal commission.

Naveed Akram has been charged with 59 offences, including terrorism and murder. Sajid Akram was shot dead by police.

The 'brainwashing' of Naveed Akram

Marcus is revealing what he knew about the Akrams, after first warning Four Corners eight months before the Bondi attack that Australia was dangerously exposed to an IS network he had infiltrated.

ASIO recruited him from his home country in the Middle East and paid him as a human source, officially defined as an "agent", to monitor Sydney's IS network between 2017 and 2023.

He told Four Corners he first reported Naveed Akram to ASIO after attending itikaf, a 10-night religious retreat for Ramadan, with the 17-year-old and a small group of IS supporters including Isaac El Matari.

Marcus alleged that during itikaf at Sydney's Othman Bin Affan Mosque, El Matari shared with Naveed his plans to attempt to smuggle firearms from Lebanon for terrorist attacks in Sydney.

Marcus claimed the group tried to brainwash Naveed with graphic IS videos, calling for attacks in Australia.

He claimed he reported this in confidential meetings with his ASIO handlers.

"They [ASIO] became interested because it's a very serious matter," he said. "They asked me to put an eye on him [Naveed]."

Four Corners has not been able to independently verify the substance of Marcus's conversations with ASIO or of Naveed's interactions with the El Matari group.

Multiple sources have confirmed Marcus, Naveed Akram and El Matari were at the mosque.

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Othman Bin Affan Mosque told Four Corners that during itikaf, Naveed Akram was engaging with a small group of men, including El Matari, who were later expelled from the mosque because of their "hostile, confrontational" behaviour.

The mosque's president said the men had no link to the mosque and "do not represent us in any way".

"Othman Bin Affan Mosque stands firmly against extremism and hate. We don't tolerate it," he said in a statement.

"If we had known there was any link to extremism or any threat to safety, we would have reported it."

El Matari was arrested a month after itikaf and later jailed for seven years for planning terrorist attacks and attempting to travel to Afghanistan to join IS.

Court documents show police secretly recorded El Matari in the weeks before and after itikaf, as he attempted to recruit fellow IS supporters for an insurgency in Sydney and the Blue Mountains.

In one conversation — just days before itikaf and more than six years before the Bondi attack — El Matari plotted to spend "half a decade" building a network of IS fighters in the bush and the city.

"We keep brothers as sleepers … brothers that are trusted with sending them on missions, brothers that send money … brothers that plan the attacks, brothers that bomb places of political significance," he said on May 22, 2019.

"These are all places they are open to the public. There's no security protecting them."

In separate conversations, he plotted to obtain firearms and explosive devices to emulate a 2017 ISIS uprising that took place in the southern Philippines.

El Matari's arrest in 2019 prompted an ASIO investigation into his associates, including Naveed Akram.

Associations with Wisam Haddad's right-hand man

Naveed Akram had been drawn into a circle of IS sympathisers by Mr Haddad's right-hand man, Ye Ye.

Ye Ye told Four Corners he invited the 17-year-old to join the group for itikaf and later brought him to Mr Haddad's radical prayer hall, Al Madina Dawah Centre.

Ye Ye had earlier introduced Naveed to a street-preaching crew, Bankstown Street Dawah, where extremists attempted to convert teenagers and draw them into Islamic State.

Four Corners has traced Ye Ye's involvement in jihadist preaching groups, linked to Mr Haddad and closely monitored by authorities, back to at least 2012.

It was within that scene that Naveed Akram first encountered members of the El Matari cell, including IS recruiter Youssef Uweinat, a youth leader at Mr Haddad's centre.

While ASIO was investigating Naveed Akram, police arrested Uweinat, uncovering messages urging boys to become "soldiers of the Australian Wilayah [province]".

Court documents showed he flooded the teenagers with violent propaganda, encouraged them to carry out suicide attacks and coached them to radicalise other minors through preaching.

Naveed Akram was filmed trying to convert teenagers as part of Street Dawah at the time he was associating with Uweinat.

Authorities have not said whether Uweinat and Naveed communicated privately.

Ye Ye told Four Corners he had nothing to do with the Bondi attack and no recent contact with the Akrams.

"I don't agree with them killing innocent people, especially that little girl," he said.

"If I had anything to do with it, authorities would arrest me."

Mr Haddad has denied any knowledge of, or involvement in, the Bondi attack and the ABC does not suggest otherwise.

In the aftermath of the Bondi attack, he said there was no evidence showing any "personal, organisational or instructional link" with Naveed Akram.

Uweinat did not respond to questions from Four Corners.

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Threat assessments

Counterterrorism sources have confirmed ASIO shared its 2020 assessment of Naveed Akram with the Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT) in an attempt to limit the risk that he could become a terrorist.

They said NSW Police interviewed the teenager and added him to an intelligence database, the Known Entity Management System (KEMS), which tracks people who could go on to become terrorists.

As part of the KEMS, authorities can prevent potential extremists from travelling abroad, including through passport and visa cancellations, according to the National Counter-Terrorism Plan.

Naveed Akram was no longer on the KEMS watchlist by the time of the Bondi attack.

NSW Police, ASIO and the AFP did not respond to questions about when he was removed from the list.

They said they were unable to respond to specific questions because of the investigation into the Bondi attack, Naveed Akram's court case and the royal commission.

Former New Scotland Yard counterterrorism commander Richard Walton said Australian inquiries were likely to scrutinise whether the 2020 assessment of Naveed Akram was accurate.

"It's very significant that an undercover operative tasked by ASIO has come forward to give us information," he said.

"I'm sure that ASIO will assess and reassess … intelligence that [was] provided to make sure that their assessment was the right one and what lessons could be learned."

He said authorities should have reassessed Naveed Akram regularly to prevent a terrorist attack.

ASIO said "tragically" it did not know what the Akrams were planning to do at Bondi, "or indeed that they were planning anything".

"This is a matter of grave regret. It weighs on us heavily. But that does not mean additional resourcing would have prevented the attack or there was intelligence that was not acted on or that our officers made mistakes," it said in a statement.

It said it worked closely with federal, state and territory law enforcement partners "and we routinely share intelligence through the Joint Counter Terrorism teams".

"This is one reason why there have been 28 major terrorism disruptions since September 2014," it said.

"Ultimately, the royal commission will make its own assessment about intelligence sharing based on all the evidence, rather than selective claims."

Relationship breakdown

Marcus's relationship with ASIO fell apart.

He was charged in 2022 with multiple accounts of assault and stalking, which were later withdrawn and dismissed.

His cover was also blown and he took out a restraining order, telling a Sydney court that extremists threatened to harm him because they discovered his work with ASIO.

ASIO withdrew its support for his permanent residency and he left the country in 2023.

In its statement to Four Corners, ASIO described Marcus as "unreliable and disgruntled".

Marcus denied those claims, saying, "I stand by my whistleblowing".

"I am disappointed that ASIO has chosen to denigrate me … My whistleblowing is in the public interest," he said.

"The allegation I am unreliable does not withstand scrutiny.

"If I were … ASIO would not have tasked me with infiltrating dangerous local and international terror networks and gathering important intelligence on their members."

He said his intelligence resulted in "successful prosecutions of terrorists and prevention of a number of … terrorist attacks".

Marcus is now seeking assistance from Australia for protection and resettlement, after receiving death threats for speaking out against the Haddad network.

"People [at Bondi] were killed brutally, were murdered," said Marcus, who is protecting himself in a safe location overseas.

"[The] public need to understand and to see what led to this horrible terror attack."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-09/bondi-shooting-spy-claims-told-asio-terror-links-four-corners/106306092

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdXxPZsGedE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHnaHHC8Q9c

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Israeli leader hails 'new beginning' in Australian ties

Andrew Brown - February 11 2026

Israel's relationship with Australia has entered a "new beginning", its president says after being welcomed by Anthony Albanese for formal talks.

Isaac Herzog was welcomed at parliament house by the prime minister on Wednesday during the third day of an Australian state visit which has been marked by heated protests and heightened security.

Mr Herzog was invited to Australia by the federal government following the Bondi terror attack but has received a hostile reception from protesters and some politicians over Israel's actions in Gaza.

The president has also met with survivors of the Bondi attack and said the visit had been emotional.

"When one Jew is hurt anywhere around the world, we in Israel ache and our heart misses a beat," he said after being welcomed to parliament house.

"It is also an opportunity to bring the relations between our nations on a new beginning and better future.

"The relations between us do not depend only on the issue of Israel and the Palestinians and the conflict, but has a much broader base, and we should together make sure that it's uplifted to new directions."

Mr Albanese said the visit was an opportunity to provide solace to Australia's Jewish community.

"It's also been an opportunity for us to engage on issues, and I look forward to a further discussion about the Middle East, about (how) we in Australia want to see peace in the Middle East," he told reporters.

"We want to see Israelis and Palestinians living side by side in peace and security as we go forward."

Mr Herzog will also hold talks with Speaker Milton Dick and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley while in the nation's capital.

The prime minister earlier pressed the president on the death of Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom, who was killed by an Israeli drone strike while working for World Central Kitchen in Gaza in 2024.

The deaths of Ms Frankcom and her six World Central Kitchen colleagues were "a tragedy and an outrage", Mr Albanese told parliament on Wednesday.

"We have made it clear that remains the Australian government's position and we've also made clear our expectation that there be transparency about Israel's ongoing investigation into the incident.

"We continue to press for full accountability, including any appropriate criminal charges."

Mr Albanese said he also raised a "range of other government concerns" with the Israeli leader.

"The Israeli president has said that he will engage and come back to the Australian government about the issues that we have raised," he said.

Earlier, the Israeli president was welcomed by Governor-General Sam Mostyn at Government House, where he received a 21-gun salute.

Security was bolstered with snipers seen on the roof of the governor-general's residence.

Arrivals were closely monitored and only pre-approved people were allowed in ahead of Mr Herzog's arrival.

Protesters stationed at the Government House lookout could be heard yelling in the background.

Ms Mostyn said she was delighted to welcome the Herzogs and presented them with a photo of Mr Herzog's father, Chaim Herzog, during his trip to Australia in 1986, when he stayed at Government House.

Mr Herzog said he was honoured to see his father's photo in the residence.

"This is a great moment in relations between our nations," he said.

"I know how much you spend time in consoling and supporting the Jewish community."

Mr Herzog said both Australia and Israel "share the need to fight anti-Semitism with no doubts … so we uproot this phenomenon".

He also planted a tree at the Israeli embassy in Canberra.

Hundreds of protesters earlier gathered on the lawns of parliament house demonstrating against Mr Herzog's visit, prompting an increased police presence.

The Israeli president is set to travel to Melbourne for the final day of his visit.

https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/9172469/israeli-leader-hails-new-beginning-in-australian-ties/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx9XIdDttFA

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Israeli president’s visit to firebombed synagogue cancelled over safety fears

Chip Le Grand - February 11, 2026

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Community safety concerns have prompted Israeli President Isaac Herzog to cancel his planned visit to the site of one of Australia’s most infamous antisemitic attacks – the firebombing of the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne.

Herzog had intended to go to the destroyed synagogue on Thursday morning to start the Melbourne leg of his state visit, which will culminate in a large Jewish community event on Thursday afternoon at an undisclosed venue.

Two sources with knowledge of the president’s movements said the visit to the Ripponlea synagogue had been cancelled because of the difficulty of securing residential streets in the area and logistical issues caused by the size of the president’s travelling party.

The decision was taken after consultation with Victoria Police. Adass Israel president Michael Spigelman, who will attend an event with the president scheduled later in the day, declined to comment when contacted by this masthead.

Victoria Police has been granted special powers under terrorism legislation in preparation for Herzog’s visit to Melbourne – his final engagement in Australia before he flies home to Israel.

The powers, which have been used a handful of times, allow police to stop and search vehicles or people in public places, seize items and detain people as a preventative measure.

They will apply to specific areas Herzog intends to visit and are not designed to impact a planned protest expected to attract upwards of 5000 people to the CBD.

Police Deputy Commissioner Bob Hill stressed there was no intelligence suggesting a specific threat, but they had sought additional powers as a preventative measure.

“We want to be clear that there is no intelligence at this time to suggest that the event is the target of any specific threat,” he said.

“However, we are well prepared for both the visit and any protest activity this week, and have adequate police resources available to provide an agile response to any incidents.”

Last year the Albanese government took the rare step of expelling Iran’s ambassador to Australia and pulling its own diplomats out of Tehran after ASIO and Mossad gathered information showing that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had commissioned the December 2024 arson attack on Adass Israel and a firebombing in Sydney.

The government proscribed the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation. Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected the accusations.

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The AFP this week released images purporting to show exiled tobacco kingpin Kazem Hamad in the custody of Iraqi authorities. Hamad is wanted over a string of alleged gangland crimes including murder, kidnapping, extortion and drug importation and is also suspected of helping to arrange and pay for the Adass Israel attack.

Two men, Giovanni Laulu, 21, and Younes Ali Younes, 20, who police accuse of lighting the Adass Israel fire in the early hours of December 6, 2024, while people were praying and studying inside the synagogue, are facing arson and other charges. No one was killed in the attack.

The synagogue was gutted by the blaze. The Adass Israel congregation, a small, Yiddish speaking, non-Zionist ultra-Orthodox community within Melbourne’s diverse Jewish diaspora, have vowed to rebuild on the Ripponlea site.

Hill said a significant police operation was under way to ensure Herzog’s visit was safe for him, the protesters, the community and police.

He said the operation would involve one of the largest deployments of police numbers in recent times, including specialist units. The first day of Herzog’s visit to Australia was marred by violent confrontations involving NSW police and anti-Israel protesters in Sydney.

“Significant planning has been undertaken and a number of police, including a range of specialist resources, will be dedicated to the event to ensure the highest level of safety and security for all involved,” Hill said.

The Supreme Court granted the special police powers on Wednesday morning. They will be activated on Thursday, ahead of Herzog’s arrival, and will remain in place until his departure.

The provisions have been used only four times since they were first activated in 2006, most recently at the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN)-Australia Special Summit and the protest-marred Land Forces expo in 2024.

Hill said police had sought to activate the special powers instead of declaring designated areas, most commonly used to search people in public places, because of the Bondi terror attack, Herzog’s position, and ongoing tension in the community about his arrival.

“We understand that this visit has caused some emotions to rise in some community groups. We’re conscious of that,” Hill said.

Police are aware of a planned protest in Melbourne’s CBD on Thursday afternoon, but Hill said they were not expecting any significant public order issues.

The rally is scheduled to begin at 5pm, with protesters marching from Flinders Street Station to Parliament House in Spring Street.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/police-granted-extra-powers-to-prepare-for-israeli-president-s-melbourne-visit-20260211-p5o1e7.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37CD2WdXP30

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Two Chinese nationals charged with foreign interference over alleged Buddhist group spying

BEN PACKHAM - 11 February 2026

Two more Chinese nationals have been charged with foreign interference offences for allegedly collecting information on a Canberra Buddhist group for Beijing’s Public Security Bureau.

The 25-year-old man and 31-year-old woman were due to face Canberra Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

They are accused of working with a female Chinese national who was charged in August over alleged covert monitoring of the Canberra branch of the Guan Yin Citta Buddhist association, which the Chinese Communist Party considers an “evil cult”.

All three face charges of reckless foreign interference, which carries a maximum 15-year prison term.

The arrests are part of a joint AFP-ASIO operation dubbed Operation Autumn-Shield.

The first Chinese woman charged over the matter was granted bail in October by an ACT magistrate, who acknowledged there was an outside risk she might flee the country.

Prosecutors argued the woman, who has significant “unexplained wealth” and a China-based husband who works for the country’s Public Security Bureau, could have a fresh passport issued by Beijing allowing her to abscond.

But Magistrate Jane Campbell said the likelihood that she would abscond or interfere with witnesses was not sufficient to deny her liberty.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Stephen Nutt said foreign interference was a serious crime that undermined democracy and social cohesion.

“Australia is not immune to foreign interference, and we should not expect this arrest will prevent further attempts to target our diaspora communities,” Assistant Commissioner Nutt said.

“Members of our culturally and linguistically diverse communities are more likely to be victims of foreign interference or transnational repression than to be offenders.”

ASIO director-general Mike Burgess said foreign interference remained one of Australia’s principal security concerns.

“A complex, challenging and changing security environment is becoming more dynamic, diverse and degraded,” Mr Burgess said.

“Multiple foreign regimes are monitoring, harassing and intimidating members of our diaspora communities. This sort of behaviour is utterly unacceptable and cannot be tolerated.”

Guan Yin Citta has clandestine centres in mainland China, as well as associations in the US, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan.

China’s security services have reportedly sought to eradicate the movement, which was founded by Shanghai-born Sydney man Lu Junhong, who died in 2021 aged 62.

According to the Bitter Winter human rights magazine, confidential documents from Fijian Province authorities revealed Guan Yin Citta was banned by Beijing and declared “xie jiao” – an “evil cult”.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/two-chinese-nationals-charged-with-foreign-interference-over-alleged-buddhist-group-spying/news-story/3a8c1fea13d41d7bb861635e6621338c

https://www.afp.gov.au/news-centre/media-release/two-further-chinese-nationals-charged-foreign-interference-canberra

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AFP releases images of tobacco kingpin Kazem Hamad in Iraqi custody

Chris Vedelago and Marta Pascual Juanola - February 10, 2026

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Two images of tobacco kingpin Kazem “Kaz” Hamad claiming to show him in custody in a secret location in Iraq have been released by the Australian Federal Police as part of its investigation into the activities of the man who allegedly launched the “tobacco war”.

It’s the first official information about Hamad’s circumstances since news of his arrest in Baghdad was announced in mid-January by the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq.

Hamad had been labelled by Iraqi authorities as “one of the most dangerous wanted men in the world” in their press release announcing his capture for alleged links to crimes including “shootings, murders, kidnappings, violent assaults, extortion and drug imports”.

The 41-year-old, of whom no photo more recent than 2015 had been published, appears thinner than in the small number of images that have been circulating in the media since the start of the tobacco war.

In one of the images, Hamad, also known as “old mate” and “Abu Samir”, is dressed in a T-shirt and yellow prison garb and is holding a printed sign with his personal and arrest details in Arabic.

This masthead could not independently verify the authenticity of the images, which were provided to the AFP by Iraqi authorities.

One image depicts Hamad in front of a height chart, a standard format for mugshots. But the numbers appear out of sequence and scale, suggesting he could be up to nine feet tall.

Other details that raised concern about the image’s authenticity include aspects of Hamad’s hands and shirt neckline, raising the possibility it could have been digitally altered or the product of artificial intelligence.

The AFP said it had not altered the image and was not aware of any alteration.

The sign in the image confirms Hamad, who was born in the city of Nasiriya, about 360 kilometres south-east of Baghdad, is being prosecuted over narcotic offences.

In the second image, Hamad is standing in front of a nondescript white wall in a bright yellow prison shirt and pants.

Since his release from prison in Australia in July 2023 and deportation to Iraq, police suspect Hamad and his gang have taken control of large sections of the illicit tobacco market and forced a new order on Melbourne’s gangland scene.

The images came with a warning from AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett directed at Hamad’s syndicate, known on the street as the 313s, Kaz’s Boys or the Iraqis.

“I want every offender connected to Hamad or his syndicate to look long and hard at this photo,” Barrett said. “And I want to be very clear – just because Hamad is in custody, the AFP’s job is not done.”

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Hamad has become the subject of a special AFP investigative taskforce known as Operation Carmen.

This follows a two-year operation by Victoria Police known as Taskforce Lunar, which was set up just months after Hamad’s release from prison in the wake of a string of firebombings, two murders and an attempted grave desecration allegedly linked to him.

“The Hamad syndicate are responsible for a significant number of serious offences, including arsons, extortions [and] shootings linked to the illicit tobacco trade as well as the importation and distribution of illicit tobacco,” a Victoria Police intelligence report obtained by this masthead says.

Barrett said Hamad, whose full name is Kadhim Malik Hamad Rabah al-Hajami, had been arrested as a result of an “independent decision” by the Iraqi judiciary.

It is the first time federal law enforcement has mentioned Hamad by name despite essentially publicly identifying him as a national security threat during a Senate estimates hearing last year.

The move came after foreign intelligence linked him to the firebombing of the Adass Israel synagogue in the inner Melbourne suburb of Ripponlea in December 2024. The attack is believed to have been ordered by the Iranian government and carried out by Hamad’s foot soldiers.

The AFP also confirmed that Hamad’s syndicate has a near nationwide presence in five states and one territory, although they were not named.

“The AFP is supporting this independent Iraqi investigation and is providing relevant operational information that relates to crimes the AFP believe Hamad or his syndicate have committed or directed in Australia,” Barrett said.

Federal investigators travelled to Iraq last week to “provide further assistance” and received information in return from local authorities.

Barrett said Hamad’s syndicate had begun to fracture since his arrest, from “a lack of leadership, infighting, and dysfunction”.

“The AFP will use every partnership, capability, and legislative power to dismantle this dangerous syndicate and identify every single individual who is linked to this crime gang.”

The underworld has been rife with wild rumours about Hamad’s conditions, including everything from allegations of torture to claims he was set to walk free.

The AFP said the images had been taken by Iraqi authorities and released with the permission of Iraq’s National Centre for International Judicial Co-operation.

Members of the public with information to share about Hamad or the syndicate can call the National Security Hotline on 1800 123 400.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/afp-releases-image-of-tobacco-kingpin-kazem-hamad-in-iraqi-custody-20260210-p5o12z.html

https://www.afp.gov.au/news-centre/media-release/afp-commissioner-krissy-barrett-statement-operation-carmen

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Iraqi mugshot of Kaz Hamad featured digitally altered background

DAMON JOHNSTON - 10 February 2026

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The background of a mugshot of arrested Australian crime boss Kaz Hamad was digitally altered before the image was sent to the Australian Federal Police.

The Australian has confirmed the mugshot sent to the AFP by Iraqi authorities, who are holding Hamad in a secret jail in Iraq, was altered to include an image of a height chart.

The AFP is not questioning the photo showing Hamad in custody is anything but genuine but has learned the background, which features some inconsistencies around the height measurements, was digitally inserted into the image.

The AFP has also released a separate image, also supplied by Iraqi authorities, showing Hamad in what appears to be a yellow prison outfit, without the height chart.

“The AFP released images to the media which were supplied by Iraqi authorities, who have Hamad in their custody in a secret location,” an AFP spokesperson said.

“The AFP has no further comment.”

Australia’s top cop has urged local criminal associates of Kaz Hamad to treat an Iraqi mugshot of the global crime boss as a warning they could be the next gang members busted by police.

As the mastermind of Melbourne’s illegal tobacco firebombing war languishes in a secret Iraqi jail, Australian Federal Police commissioner Krissy Barrett released an arrest photo taken after Iraqi authorities swooped on the nation’s most wanted man last month.

The 41-year-old, arrested by Iraq’s Narcotics Directorate on January 21, is being held on drug-trafficking charges in a high-­security prison and it is believed he could face the death penalty.

“I want every offender connected to Hamad or his syndicate to look long and hard at this photo,” Ms Barrett said after it was released with the approval of Iraq’s National Centre for International Judicial ­Cooperation. “And I want to be very clear: just because Hamad is in custody, the AFP’s job is not done.”

The AFP’s Operation Carmen – the mission to dismantle Hamad’s syndicate operating in five states and one territory in Australia – has been ramped up over the past month. Last week Victoria Police rounded up a group of Melbourne associates.

Since Iraq launched, with the assistance of the AFP, an effective decapitation strike by arresting Hamad, the criminal’s syndicate has started unravelling, the AFP has said.

“Due to Hamad’s arrest, a lack of leadership, infighting, and dysfunction within the syndicate is creating new opportunities for investigators attached to Operation Carmen,” Ms Barrett said.

“The AFP will use every partnership, capability, and legislative power to dismantle this dangerous syndicate and identify every single individual who is linked to this crime gang.

“The AFP will work closely with state and territory law-enforcement agencies, which have had significant success in arresting, disrupting and charging alleged syndicate members.”

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The AFP is working alongside Iraqi investigators and feeding intelligence about crimes Hamad and his associates have committed or directed in Australia to them. This has involved AFP agents last week travelling to Iraq.

When she took the top job at the AFP late last year, Ms Barrett designated Hamad as Australia’s most wanted man and branded him a “national security threat”.

Iraqi-born Hamad, deported from Australia after being jailed for drug trafficking, is also suspected of being involved in a number antisemitic attacks, including the firebombing of the Adass Israel synagogue in December 2024.

Hamad, who has pocketed tens of millions of dollars selling illegal cigarettes, had enjoyed a luxury life in Iraq before his arrest.

Ms Barrett, while serving as a deputy commissioner, revealed Hamad’s name had come up during the AFP’s investigation into the synagogue attack.

“That is a name that has come up … it remains one of our ongoing lines of inquiry,” Barrett said at the time.

After swooping on him, Iraq’s General Directorate of Narcotics released a rare statement describing him as one of the most dangerous wanted men in the world.

“He is responsible for importing large quantities of drugs into Iraq and Australia, as well as smuggling heroin,” it said, going on to link him to organised crime, shootings, murders, kidnappings, violent assaults, extortion and drug imports.

“Furthermore, he is involved with outlaw gangs that have extensive influence within Australia and the Middle East and are responsible for carrying out murders, shootings, money laundering, fraud, assaults, arson and drug trafficking on a global level.”

Hamad’s grip on the cigarette market since a violent battle over the lucrative trade erupted in early 2023 has been linked to almost 200 firebombings and widespread extortion, targeting rival operators and innocent businesses, including a house fire that killed an innocent woman.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/afp-release-kaz-hamad-jail-photo-and-warn-crime-syndicate-you-could-be-next/news-story/7f07e791a4f70af1cd96d29384c26e02

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9opQlf13wA

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>>24051415

Australia’s online safety commissioner stares down US Congress threats

Brittany Busch - February 10, 2026

Online safety chief Julie Inman Grant is getting her own lawyer to deal with the United States’ repeated demands that she testify before Congress, even as a slew of senior bureaucrats work with her to manage the “unprecedented request” to travel to DC to defend Australia’s social media laws or face contempt charges.

Republican Congressman Jim Jordan in November summoned Inman Grant, a dual Australian-US citizen working as Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, to answer questions over her delivery of the Australian government’s online laws, including her attempts to force Elon Musk’s company X to take down graphic footage of a church stabbing in Sydney.

Jordan, who chairs the US House Judiciary Committee, labelled Inman Grant a “noted zealot for global take-downs” and an enemy of American free speech.

Inman Grant, who has previously expressed uncertainty she would be safe from prosecution if she returned to the US, said on Tuesday she had written back to Jordan via the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to answer the committee’s questions.

“DFAT has been very engaged. My department secretary has been engaged, as has the secretary of the Attorney-General,” Inman Grant said, speaking on Tuesday night at a Senate estimates hearing.

“This is a very unprecedented request for another legislative body to try and compel a senior bureaucrat from another government doing the job that the government set out for her to do.”

Inman Grant said she would get her own legal counsel to explore her options, “but this is something I’m going to have to work through government-wide”.

Asked whether she was concerned over the power the US might have to compel her to testify, Inman Grant said: “I think they’re more focused on illegal immigrants at the moment… but yes, I’m sure that would be cause for concern”.

“But I guess what I would say is, I think it would be highly unusual for me executing my job. The Online Safety Act was developed by the Coalition. It’s always been a bipartisan issue delivered by parliament. I’m executing the will and the laws of Australia as passed by the parliament.”

She said in her letter to Jordan she had explained her role as interpreting and implementing legislation.

“But I’m not the creator, obviously not. I can’t carry the water for the parliament or the government, so they decided it really needed to be expanded to be a government-wide engagement.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has defended Inman Grant, saying Australia could take pride in its online regulations targeting social media giants.

Inman Grant on Tuesday rejected Jordan’s claims she had “harassed” American companies to comply with Australian regulations, and said his committee had also levelled similar allegations at European leaders as they also try to grapple with regulating online spaces.

“Obviously, we have to talk to our regulatory targets to make sure that they’re complying with our processes, and we do that in quite a constructive and cordial way,” she said.

The Senate estimates hearing also heard that the eSafety commissioner’s external legal costs have more than doubled this financial year. The commissioner’s office public servant Richard Fleming said the fees had grown from $750,000 in 2024-25, to almost $2 million so far for the financial year ending in June.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/australia-s-online-safety-commissioner-stares-down-us-congress-threats-20260210-p5o16u.html

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>>23981415

>>24235950

>>24242249

‘Baseless assertions’: ASIO boss defends failure to prevent Bondi attack

Matthew Knott - February 11, 2026

ASIO boss Mike Burgess has defended his organisation’s inability to prevent the worst terror attack in Australian history, saying an internal review commissioned after the Bondi massacre backed the spy agency’s 2019 view that shooter Naveed Akram did not pose a serious threat.

In his first Senate estimates hearings since the Bondi attack, Burgess said father-and-son shooters Sajid and Naveed Akram had “gone dark” to prevent detection ahead of the attack.

He welcomed the royal commission as the best way to understand how the massacre occurred and develop policies to prevent similar attacks.

Burgess said the fact the Bondi massacre occurred was a “matter of grave regret for me and my officers. It weighs heavily on us.”

“But that does not mean intelligence was ignored or my officers made mistakes,” he said in a late-night appearance on Tuesday.

“The grim reality is – as I’ve also said many times – ASIO is not all seeing and all knowing.

“ASIO and our law enforcement partners have disrupted 28 major terrorism plots since September 2014.

“Tragically, though, we did not know what the perpetrators of the Bondi attack were planning – or indeed that they were planning anything.

“It appears the alleged terrorists demonstrated a high level of security awareness to hide their plot. In simple terms, they went dark to stay off the radar.”

Burgess revealed that, immediately after the attack on December 14, he commissioned a review of ASIO’s handling of Naveed Akram, who had come onto their radar six years earlier.

“The review was conducted internally, but by a reviewer from outside ASIO who received unfettered and unfiltered access to our records,” he said.

“The review is highly classified because it contains details about individuals and sensitive capabilities however I can say that we stand by our 2019 assessment the Akrams did not adhere to or intend to engage in violent extremism at that time.

“In other words, many of the claims and criticisms being made about ASIO’s handling of the case are baseless.”

He said it would be up to royal commissioner Virginia Bell, who is being assisted by former ASIO boss Dennis Richardson, to make her own judgment.

Burgess cautioned against using the benefit of hindsight to declare that an intelligence failure led to the attack, in which 15 people were shot dead and dozens of others were injured at a Hannukah celebration on Bondi Beach.

“In the days and weeks after the Bondi attack, assumptions, assertions, hypotheticals and opinions quickly became accepted as facts by some,” he said.

“They were recycled and exaggerated in the following weeks. This resulted in calls for action that were not supported by any fact.

“This is why the royal commission is so important.”

Burgess said he had repeatedly warned about escalating antisemitism in Australia and described it as ASIO’s most pressing threat-to-life priority.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/baseless-assertions-asio-boss-defends-failure-to-prevent-bondi-attack-20260211-p5o18g.html

>>23978158

>>23981415

>>24235950

>>24242249

>>24243880

Bondi shooters went 'dark to stay off the radar': ASIO

Dominic Giannini - February 11 2026

Australia's spy chief says his agency will own any mistakes following Bondi's anti-Semitic terrorist attack as he revealed an external investigation cleared ASIO's review of one of the gunmen in 2019.

Naveed Akram and his father, Sajid, killed 15 innocent people and wounded dozens more during a shooting massacre at Bondi Beach in December during a Jewish Hanukkah festival.

Law enforcement alleges they were inspired by Islamic State ideology.

The father was shot dead by police at the time while the son faces terrorism and murder charges.

ASIO director general Mike Burgess said while ASIO and law enforcement partners had disrupted 28 major terrorism plots since September 2014, Australia's intelligence agencies couldn't catch everything.

He said the attack weighed heavily on him and his officers but this didn't mean intelligence was ignored or people made mistakes.

"The grim reality is, as I've said many times, ASIO is not all-seeing and all-knowing, we cannot stop every terrorist, just as we cannot catch every spy," Mr Burgess told a parliamentary hearing on Tuesday night.

"It appears the alleged terrorists demonstrated a high level of security awareness to hide their plot. In simple terms, they went dark to stay off the radar.

"If ASIO is found to have made mistakes, we will own them, and we will learn from them."

The director general said an external investigator had "unfettered and unfiltered access" to the agency to review whether there were any intelligence shortcomings.

It follows the younger Akram having come across ASIO's radar in 2019 due to his association with others, but the then-teenager wasn't deemed to present any ongoing threat.

Mr Burgess said the highly classified review into his agency following the Bondi attack reaffirmed ASIO's actions in 2019.

"I can say that we stand by our 2019 assessment the Akrams did not adhere to or intend to engage in violent extremism at that time," he said.

"In other words, many of the claims and criticisms being made about ASIO's handling of the case are baseless."

His public comments following an ABC Four Corners program aired on Monday, during which a former ASIO agent claimed he shared intelligence about Naveed's radicalisation with the agency in 2019.

ASIO said it investigated the information but couldn't substantiate it.

The intelligence agency further denied accusations that it failed to act on the former agent's intelligence, saying his comments to the ABC were untrue, as he had attributed things to Naveed that were said and done by another person.

Mr Burgess also cautioned against applying hindsight.

"Things that might appear obvious in retrospect may not have been obvious at the time, and when individuals made decisions in one context, it may not be fair to judge them in a different context," he told senators in the Tuesday hearing.

"In the days and weeks after the Bondi attack, assumptions, assertions, hypotheticals and opinions quickly became accepted as facts by some.

"They were recycled and exaggerated in the following weeks. This resulted in calls for action that were not supported by any fact."

https://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/9172468/bondi-shooters-went-dark-to-stay-off-the-radar-asio/