Australian spy chief says priorities shifted away from terrorism threats in years before Bondi Beach attack

SYDNEY, May 25 (Xinhua) -- Australia's spy chief told an inquiry into the Bondi Beach terror attack on Monday that his agency's priorities shifted from addressing terrorism threats to tackling espionage and foreign interference in the years before the attack.

Appearing before the second block of public hearings of the inquiry in Sydney, Mike Burgess, director-general of security in charge of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), argued that the agency responded to a rapidly changing security environment.

The Australian government lowered the terrorism threat level to "possible" from "probable" in November 2022 due to a downturn in counter-terrorism work after the Islamic State caliphate was defeated in 2019.

Burgess said espionage and foreign interference were "the principal security concern" at that time, but terrorism was "still an enduring threat."

"So yes, we were pivoting resources across because that's where the leads took us and where we were required to put effort," he said.

In August 2024, Australia raised the national terrorism threat level to "probable" in response to Islamic extremism, racist far-right extremism including neo-Nazis, and other threats.

The inquiry was established by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in January after 15 people were killed in a fatal mass shooting that targeted a Hanukkah event at Bondi Beach on Dec. 14, 2025.

Alleged gunman Naveed Akram has been charged with murder and terrorism offenses over the attack, which authorities claim was motivated by Islamic State ideology. His father and fellow alleged perpetrator, Sajid Akram, was shot dead at the scene.

The royal commission will not examine the intention and motivation behind the attack to avoid influencing criminal proceedings.

It will hand down its final report by the first anniversary of the attack. Enditem