Fifteen people have been killed in a terrorist attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach after two gunmen opened fire on a crowd celebrating the start of Hanukkah.
A 10-year-old girl is among those dead after the attack on more than 1,000 people attending a Jewish festival near the iconic beach at 6.47pm on Sunday.
One gunman, aged 50, was shot by police and died at the scene, while a second attacker, 24, was taken to hospital in critical condition. Police said the gunmen were father and son.
At least 40 people are receiving treatment in hospital, including three other children.
It is the worst mass shooting in Australia since April 1996, when a man shot and killed 35 people and wounded 23 others during a shooting spree in Port Arthur, Tasmania.
Here is everything we know about the attack in Sydney:
What happened in the Bondi Beach shooting?
Crowds had gathered at the popular tourist destination to attend an event called Chanukah by the Sea on Sunday evening. Emergency services were rushed to Campbell Parade at around 6.45pm local time after reports of shots being fired.
The police warned members of the public to take shelter before later reporting that two suspects had been captured.
Distressing videos circulating on social media appeared to show people on Bondi Beach scattering as multiple gunshots and police sirens were heard.
Other videos captured the gunmen carrying out the attack on a bridge near where the event was taking place.
Another video showed a “heroic” father-of-two, Ahmed al Ahmed, from Sydney, tackling one of the gunmen before wrestling his weapon away from him.
Mr Ahmed’s family said the 43-year-old fruit shop owner remains in hospital with bullet wounds to his arm and hand, and called him a “100 per cent hero”. New South Wales premier Chris Minns praised him as a “genuine hero”.
Who are the victims?
In an update on Monday morning, New South Wales Police said the age range of the victims ranged from 10 to 87 years old.
A total of 14 people died at the scene, including one of the gunmen. A 10-year-old girl and a 40-year-old man later died in hospital.
Police also said that 42 injured people, including four children, were taken to hospitals across Sydney.
Five people remain in critical condition with the others remaining in serious and stable conditions, the force said.
Two police officers – a constable and probationary constable – suffered gunshot wounds. Both remain in serious but stable conditions.
British-born rabbi Eli Schlanger, who was assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi, has been named as one of the victims.
The father-of-five, who was assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi, a Jewish cultural centre, grew up in Temple Fortune, north London.
Rabbi Bentzi Sudak, a colleague and family friend, paid tribute: “If Rabbi Eli were here and you asked how to best honour him, he would say that Chanukah is when we light the menorah at the darkest time of the year.
“He would ask everyone to light the menorah every night of Chanukah and urge others to do the same. He would want us to increase the brightness. To become ambassadors of light.”
What do we know about the Bondi Beach shooters?
Police have not yet formally named the suspected gunmen, but said they were a father and son. They have been named by local media as Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24.
Sajid is thought to have been shot by police and died at the scene, while Naveed suffered critical injuries and was taken to hospital under police guard.
New South Wales Police said the attack has been declared a terrorist incident which specifically targeted the first day of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights.
Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese said the country’s main domestic spy agency, the Australian Security Intelligence Agency, had investigated Naveed over his links to a Sydney-based Islamic State terrorism cell for six months in 2019.
Mr Albanese said there was no evidence the pair were part of a cell or had help with the attack, but were “clearly” motivated by an “extremist ideology”.
What was the response to the attack?
Shortly after the attack, prime minister Mr Albanese told the nation: “The evil that was unleashed at Bondi Beach today is beyond comprehension.”
“We will dedicate every resource required to making sure you are safe and protected,” he told Australia’s Jewish population.
New South Wales premier Chris Minns described the reports and images coming from the scene as “deeply distressing”.
“This attack was designed to target Sydney’s Jewish community,” Mr Minns said.
Mr Minns told a press conference in Sydney that the attack represents “some of our worst fears about terrorism”.
Leaders from across the world condemned the attack, including US president Donald Trump, who praised bystanders who intervened to stop the attacker.
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