Australian state pushes tough gun laws, ‘terror symbols’ ban after shooting

Australia

Sydney –  Australia’s most populous state pushed ahead Monday with what it said were the country’s strictest gun laws and a ban on displaying “terrorist” symbols after two gunmen killed 15 people celebrating a Jewish festival in Sydney last week.

A father and son are accused of targeting a Hanukkah event on Bondi Beach, killing 15 people in the nation’s deadliest mass shooting in almost three decades.The country observed a minute’s silence at 6:47 pm (0747 GMT) on Sunday – exactly a week since the first reports of gunfire.On Monday, the government of New South Wales – where the shooting took place – recalled its parliament for two days to introduce what it called the “toughest firearm reforms in the country”.

“We can’t pretend that the world is the same as it was before that terrorist incident on Sunday,” New South Wales Premier Chris Minns told reporters.

“I’d give anything to go back a week, a month, two years, to ensure that didn’t happen, but we need to make sure that we take steps so that it never happens again.”

The new rules will cap the number of guns an individual can own to four, or ten for exempted individuals like farmers.

There are more than 1.1 million firearms in the state, officials said.

The legislation would also ban the display of “terrorist symbols”, including the flag of the Islamic State, which was found in a car linked to one of the alleged shooters.

Authorities will also be able to prohibit protests for up to three months following a terrorism incident.

Police had said the two alleged gunmen were inspired by “Islamic State ideology”.

One, Sajid Akram, 50, was shot and killed by police during the Bondi attack. An Indian national, he entered Australia on a visa in 1998.

His 24-year-old son Naveed, an Australian-born citizen, remains in hospital under police guard and faces multiple charges, including terrorism and 15 murders.

Minns said Monday he would also look into stricter hate speech legislation next year, including restrictions on the phrase “globalise the intifada”.

The phrase is a common chant at pro-Palestinian rallies and refers to past uprisings against Israeli forces in the occupied territories.

Australia’s federal government has also flagged a suite of reforms to gun ownership and hate speech laws, as well as a review of police and intelligence services.

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced last week a sweeping buyback scheme to “get guns off our streets”.

It is the largest gun buyback since 1996, when Australia cracked down on firearms in the wake of a mass shooting that killed 35 people at Port Arthur.

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Source: AFP

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