• Police claim attackers were man, son; one of them killed
• Two cops among 40 injured
• About 1,000 attended Jewish holiday celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach
• Bystander hailed as hero for tackling gunman, wrenching away rifle
• Pakistan’s president, PM express condolences, join world leaders in condemning attack
SYDNEY: Gunmen opened fire at a Jewish holiday celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday, killing at least 16 people, in what Australian officials described as a “targeted antisemitic attack”.
One of the suspected gunmen was also killed, while a second gunman was said to be in critical condition. Australian police said the alleged attackers were a father and son duo, and that they were not looking for a third offender as investigations showed only two offenders were responsible for the attack that also injured 40.
Hours earlier, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told a press conference police were investigating whether a third attacker was involved.
Two police officers were among 29 people taken to the hospital with injuries, he said.
One of the suspected shooters was identified by police as Naveed Akram, who lives in the Sydney suburb of Bonnyrigg, a senior law enforcement official told the public broadcaster Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
ABC gave no information on his nationality. “The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mr Akram’s home … was being raided by police on Sunday evening,” it reported.
Australian police said an “improvised explosive device” had been found in a car linked to a suspect in the deadly shooting. “We have found an improvised explosive device in a car which is linked to the deceased offender,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told a news conference.
Authorities said far more people would have been killed were it not for a bystander, identified by local media as fruit shop owner Ahmed al-Ahmed, 43, who was filmed charging a gunman from behind, grappling with him and wresting a rifle from his hands.
“There are many, many people alive tonight as a result of his bravery,” said Chris Minns, premier of New South Wales state, where Sydney is located, calling the bystander “a genuine hero”.
A bomb-disposal unit was working on several suspected improvised explosive devices, Lanyon said. Mike Burgess, a top Australian intelligence official, said one of the suspected attackers was known to authorities but had not been deemed an immediate threat.
Evil ‘beyond comprehension’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese convened a meeting of the country’s national security council and condemned the attack, saying the evil that was unleashed was “beyond comprehension”.
“This is a targeted attack on Jewish Australians on the first day of Hanukkah, which should be a day of joy, a celebration of faith,” he said. “At this dark moment for our nation, our police and security agencies are working to determine anyone associated with this outrage.”
Witnesses said the shooting at the famed beach, which was packed on a hot summer’s evening, lasted about 10 minutes, sending hundreds of people scattering along the sand and into nearby streets and parks. Police said around 1,000 people had attended the Hanukkah event.
“We all panicked and started running as well. So we left everything behind, like flip-flops, everything. We just ran through the hill,” said Bondi Junction resident Marcos Carvalho, 38, who had been packing up after a day at the beach when he heard what he estimated were 40-50 gunshots.
Bondi resident Grace Mathew said people ran past her and she heard gunshots.
“Initially you just think, it’s a beautiful day down by the beach,” she said. “You sort of think that people are just having a good time. Then more people ran past and said there’s a shooter, there’s a mass shooting and they’re killing people.”
Sunday’s shootings were the most serious of a string of attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars in Australia since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.
Australia’s Jewish diaspora is small but deeply embedded in the wider community, with about 150,000 people who identify as Jewish in the country of 27 million. About one-third of them are estimated to live in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, including Bondi.
“If we were targeted deliberately in this way, it’s something of a scale that none of us could have ever fathomed. It’s a horrific thing,” Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told Sky News, adding that his media adviser had been wounded in the attack.
Reactions
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack and extended their condolences to the victims in separate statements.
In a statement from the Presidency, President Zardari expressed sorrow over the incident, praying for the victims’ families and wishing the injured a speedy recovery.
“Pakistan, itself a victim of terrorism, stands in solidarity with Australia and condemns violence against innocent civilians,” the statement read.
PM Shehbaz extended his condolences and said Pakistan condemns terrorism in all of its forms. “We stand in solidarity with the people and government of Australia in this difficult time,” he wrote.
Other world leaders also expressed their horror and revulsion at the mass shooting.
UN chief Antonio Guterres condemned the shooting in a social media post as a “heinous” attack. “My heart is with the Jewish community worldwide on this first day of Hannukah, a festival celebrating the miracle of peace and light vanquishing darkness,” he said.
King Charles III said he was “appalled” by “most dreadful antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish people”.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, also on X, said: “Antisemitism has no place in this world. “Our prayers are with the victims of this horrific attack, the Jewish community, and the people of Australia.”
Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, called the attack a “vile act of antisemitic terror” and said it was “merely the latest, most horrifying iteration in a growing pattern of violence targeted at Jewish people across the world”.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned what he called a “very cruel attack on Jews” by “vile terrorists”.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said she was “shocked” at what she condemned as an “appalling act of violence”.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer lamented what he described as the “deeply distressing news from Australia. “The United Kingdom sends our thoughts and condolences to everyone affected by the appalling attack in Bondi beach,” he added.
Iran also joined the condemnations. Posting on X, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said: “We condemn the violent attack in Sydney, Australia. Terror and killing of human beings, wherever committed, is rejected and condemned.”
A major Australian Muslim organisation also condemned the “horrific” shooting. “Our hearts, thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and all those who witnessed or were affected by this deeply traumatic attack,” the Australian National Imams Council said, urging all Australians to stand together in unity, compassion, and solidarity.
The head of Australia’s Jewish Association meanwhile said the shooting was a “tragedy but entirely foreseeable.
Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2025