FOLLOWING reports that the gunmen in the Bondi Beach mass shooting had visited the Philippines weeks prior, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has strongly refuted the broad characterization of the country as a “training hotspot” for the Islamic State (ISIS).
During a Palace press briefing on Wednesday, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro urged foreign media to exercise responsibility in their reporting to avoid damaging the Philippines’ image and integrity.
Castro conveyed the President’s firm rejection of the “sweeping statement and the misleading characterization of the Philippines as the ISIS training hotspot.”
She also shared a statement from the National Security Council (NSC) denouncing the “misleading” portrayal, emphasizing that there is currently no validated evidence to support claims that the individuals involved in the Bondi Beach incident received any training within the Philippines.
The NSC highlighted the government’s success in significantly weakening ISIS-affiliated groups since the 2017 Marawi City siege, reducing them to a “fragmented and diminished capacity.”
President Marcos has directed the Anti-Terrorism Council to maintain vigilance and enhance coordination with international partners to prevent terrorist activity and safeguard national security.
The Bureau of Immigration previously confirmed that Sajid Akram and Naveed Akram, the father-and-son gunmen in the Bondi Beach mass shooting, visited the Philippines in November.
