A senior immigration official tells the TV news station that Tarrant arrived in Israel from
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
on October 25 using his Australian passport. He was granted a 90-day tourist visa, and left the country nine days later.
The official says Tarrant did not raise red flags during security checks.
Earlier on Sunday, police in Greece said Tarrant had visited the Greek islands of Crete and Santorini, and had traveled through the country twice, all in 2016.
Authorities in Bulgaria, Turkey, Croatia, and Hungary have also confirmed visits by Tarrant between 2016 and 2018, as he apparently studied battles between Christians and the Ottoman Empire.
In a statement, Greek police said Tarrant entered the country twice in 2016 on transit flights on November 29 and December 10.
In March 2016, he entered the country on a flight from Istanbul and stayed for a few days in Heraklion, Crete and Santorini.
Authorities are investigating any phone calls or purchases Tarrant made in Greece. On Tarrant’s rifle was written the Greek word meaning "Turk-eater" or, metaphorically, "Turk-slayer."
'How could anyone in our family do this?' 'Shattered' grandmother of 'Christchurch gunman' reveals he went from computer nerd to extremist after overseas trip - says sorry to victims
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] The grandmother of the white supremacist allegedly responsible for the massacre of 50 Moslem worshippers has apologised for her grandson's actions.
Marie Fitzgerald, 81, joined Brenton Tarrant's other grandmother Joyce in voicing her incredulity that her grandson was potentially capable of murder. She described the alleged killer as a computer enthusiast uninterested in girls when he was grew up in NSW.
She said his father's death at the hands of cancer in 2010 'took its toll' and prompted seven years of travelling through Europe
...also known as Moslem Lebensraum...and Asia.
Other members of his family - including his sister and mother - have been taken into police protection .
| Deutsche Welle adds: |
- On Monday afternoon an 18-year-old man appeared in a Christchurch court, charged with distributing the livestream video of the shooting and allegedly posting a photo of the mosque with the words "target acquired"; however investigators said he was not believed to have been directly involved in the attacks.
- Meanwhile the accused shooter Tarrant said he did not want a lawyer and would represent himself in the case.
- Earlier in the day Australian police announced they searched two homes in New South Wales in order to gather material related to Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian citizen who was from this area.