A federal royal commission in response to the alleged Bondi terror attack is anticipated to be confirmed as early as Thursday afternoon, with Anthony Albanese expected to backflip on an earlier stance against a wide-ranging Commonwealth inquiry.

Several sources close to the discussions between the government and Jewish community groups said they expected an announcement around 4.30pm on Thursday in Canberra.

Following growing calls from families of the Bondi victims, Jewish community groups, and politicians across the nation including his own Labor caucus, the prime minister had in recent days backtracked on his earlier reluctance to such an inquiry. The shooting at a Hanukah event in Bondi, allegedly carried out by a father and son inspired by ISIS, claimed the lives of 15 people.

The esteemed former high court justice Virginia Bell is expected to be named to the commission to investigate antisemitism and the Bondi attack. Bell, who was appointed counsel on NSW’s Wood royal commission into the police service in 1994, has also served as a judge on NSW’s supreme court and court of appeal, and on the high court from 2009 to 2021. She was also commissioned by Albanese’s Labor government in 2022 to investigate former prime minister Scott Morrison’s secret decisions to appoint himself to multiple ministerial portfolios without the knowledge of the ministers in those roles.

The prime minister and his cabinet had for several weeks rebuffed growing calls for a royal commission, saying such inquiries would take too long, would provide a platform to antisemitic hate, and were not good avenues to consider issues “where people have differences of views”.

It followed a mounting public pressure campaign from across Australian society, including an emotional open letter from families of most of the Bondi victims calling to convene a royal commission into the alleged terror attack and the broader issue of antisemitism in Australia. It was followed by similar requests from groups of business figures, sporting identities, security experts, and a group of former Labor MPs.

The federal Coalition opposition and others in federal parliament have backed calls from Jewish community groups for an inquiry to investigate antisemitism, with broader calls for a probe into questions about intelligence, law enforcement and firearms laws.

One of the alleged shooters, Naveed Akram – who has been charged with dozens of offences including 15 counts of murder – had been investigated by Asio in October 2019 for alleged associations with individuals involved in a reported Islamic State cell. His father was later approved for a gun licence.

Albanese had previously resisted a commonwealth royal commission, saying federal authorities would cooperate with a royal commission ordered by the New South Wales state government. The federal government instead called a narrow inquiry, led by the former Asio chief Dennis Richardson, into the national intelligence and law enforcement community – a step the former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who has led calls for a royal commission, rubbished as “bullshit”.

Albanese had previously said that a federal royal commission would take too long and that he wanted quicker answers about changes needed to intelligence or policing agencies.

More to come.