Two gunmen opened fire on crowds at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday evening during a Hanukkah celebration event, killing at least 12 people including one of the attackers and injuring dozens more in what authorities have declared a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community.
Police fatally shot one gunman at the scene, while the second was arrested in critical condition. New South Wales Police confirmed 29 people were hospitalized, including two officers and at least one child, with suspicious items believed to include improvised explosive devices found in a nearby vehicle and under examination by specialists.
The attack unfolded around 6:45 p.m. local time near Bondi Pavilion and a park playground, where hundreds had gathered for the “Chanukah by the Sea” festival marking the first night of Hanukkah. Dramatic bystander footage broadcast on Australian networks showed a member of the public tackling and disarming one gunman before aiming the weapon at him to prevent further shooting.
Eyewitness Lachlan Moran, 32, from Melbourne, described hearing initial “pops” while nearby, prompting him to sprint away: “Everyone just dropped all their possessions and everything and were running and people were crying and it was just horrible.” He reported intermittent gunfire lasting about five minutes.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns called the incident a “cowardly act of terrifying violence” designed to target Jewish Australians on a day of joy, adding that images from the scene were “deeply distressing.” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese echoed this, stating: “The scenes in Bondi are shocking and distressing. Police and emergency responders are on the ground working to save lives.”
Mass shootings remain exceedingly rare in Australia following strict gun laws enacted after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, which killed 35 people. Recent significant incidents have been limited to smaller-scale murder-suicides. The police operation remains ongoing, with an exclusion zone in place and appeals for the public to avoid the area.
Source: myxyzonline/ABCNews
