As investigations continue into the deadly shooting at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australian media reports have drawn international attention to the Philippines, prompting questions over how the country has been portrayed abroad in the aftermath of the incident.
The attack, which occurred on Sunday, December 14, 2025, left 15 people dead and several others injured during a Hanukkah celebration at the popular beachfront area. Authorities identified the suspects as father and son Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24. Sajid Akram was fatally shot by police at the scene, while his son survived and remains in critical condition.
Despite the gravity of the accusations circulating in foreign media, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs has yet to issue a formal response to descriptions used by Australian outlets that labeled the country as a “training ground for terrorism” and a “terrorism hotspot.”
On December 15, several major Australian news platforms — including news.com.au, The Australian, and The Sydney Morning Herald — published reports claiming the suspects had spent more than a month in an Asian country prior to the attack. That country was identified as the Philippines.
news.com.au reported: “The terrorists allegedly responsible for the Bondi Beach attack spent a month in the Philippines before the shooting.
“Why Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram were together in Asia, and their movements there are now a top priority for authorities.
“The father and son went together, without any other family to the nation that ‘is known as training ground for terrorism.
“’The Philippines is known as a training ground for terrorism but just how entrenched these two are is yet to be seen,’ a police source told news.com.au.”
The Australian echoed similar claims, characterizing the country as a destination linked to extremist activity. Its report stated: “Police reveal the Bondi Beach attackers took a trip to terror hotspot the Philippines before launching their deadly assault on a Jewish Hannukah event.
“For almost half a century, the southern Philippines has been a nursery ground for Islamic extremism and terrorists that have exported murder and mayhem across the globe.”
Days before the Bondi Beach incident, the Philippines was also the subject of a separate international report published by UK newspaper The Express, which warned Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, against traveling to the country to visit her ailing father, Thomas Markle Sr., who had undergone a leg amputation in a Cebu City hospital.
The Express wrote on December 13: “Meghan Markle has been told it would be ‘too dangerous’ for her to fly to her stricken father’s side in the Philippines.
“Aides have warned the Duchess of Sussex that only a major security operation costing millions could guarantee her safety in the strife-torn south-east Asian country.
“And a grimly-worded US State Department advisory issued earlier this year — and still in effect — warned citizens travelling there of heightened risks of ‘crime, terrorism, civil unrest and kidnapping.’
“A senior Hollywood source with commercial ties to Prince Harry and Meghan confirmed: ‘She understands she is an incredibly high-risk target and knows it would be too dangerous to attempt even a brief visit with too many unknown factors.'”
The same UK report also cited kidnapping incidents in the Philippines, referencing Philippine National Police data and mentioning a high-profile 2025 case involving the killing of Filipino-Chinese steel magnate Anson Que.
The Express added: “The terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and Islamic State affiliates are behind many of these kidnappings, while other organised crime groups, including Chinese Triads, control drug trafficking, prostitution, loan sharking and extortion rackets.
“Since his election in June 2022, Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos Jr has also faced civil unrest over alleged government corruption.
“Last month 650,000 protesters took to the streets of capital city Manila for three days in a demonstration over billions of ‘missing’ pounds in flood relief funds that led to countless arrests.”
Data from the Global Terrorism Trends and Analysis Center showed that the Philippines recorded 95 terrorist attacks in 2023, resulting in 299 fatalities. In the same year, the Global Terrorism Index ranked the Philippines 18th among countries most affected by terrorism.
