A deadly shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach caused widespread devastation, leaving multiple victims dead and many injured. Authorities have launched a full-scale investigation into the terror incident targeting a Hanukkah gathering.
An attack by two gunmen on Sydney's Bondi Beach targeted a Hanukkah celebration, killing 11 people and drawing international condemnation.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the shooting -- which ended with one gunmen killed and another wounded and in custody -- an act of terror, a "targeted attack on Jewish Australians".
Gunfire at Bondi
Emergency services first responded to reports of shots fired at 6:47 pm (0747 GMT) at Bondi Beach, one of the biggest tourist draws in Australia's largest city.
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The shooting took place during a "Hanukkah by the Sea" event, which police said was attended by around 1,000 people.
As gunfire erupted, crowds fled in fear from the beach in eastern Sydney and police descended on the area.
One of the alleged shooters was killed, and the second was in a critical condition, police said.
In addition to the 11 killed, emergency responders rushed at least 29 people to local hospitals.
Police declared the shooting a terrorist incident, adding they had found suspected improvised explosive devices near the beach in a vehicle linked to the suspects.
The prime minister hailed ordinary citizens who tackled and disarmed one of the gunman as "heroes".
An Act of Evil
Leaders from Australia and around the world condemned the attack as an act of antisemitism.
"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 -- an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism that has struck the heart of our nation," said Albanese.
A string of antisemitic attacks have spread fear among Jewish communities in Australia following the October 7, 2023, Hamas raid on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned Sunday's shooting in Sydney, calling it a "cruel attack on Jews" and urged the Australian authorities to step up the fight against antisemitism.
Piecing Together the Attack
Authorities are working to put together an account of what led to the attack, including the background of the alleged gunmen.
Police have asked the public to share any video footage taken in the area during the attack.
Authorities said there were no other reports of any other incidents in Sydney connected to the attack.
Devastation at Sydney’s Bondi Beach After Deadly Shooting
Towels, bags and baby strollers littered Sydney's Bondi Beach Sunday -- the harrowing aftermath of the country's worst mass shooting in years.
Eleven people were killed and many more rushed to hospital in what Australian police are now calling a "terrorist" attack targeting the city's Jewish community during a celebration of Hanukkah.
One of the shooters was also killed, while another was in critical condition.
Gunfire shattered the late afternoon fun on Bondi, Australia's most famous beach and emblematic of the country's love of sun, sea and good times.
"People were dragging their kids away, there were something like 40 shots. It sounded like fireworks," said Sydney teacher Bianca, 26, who heard dozens of gunshots ring out across the beach.
"They looked shocked, traumatised, confused."
In the wake of the bloodshed, an AFP journalist saw an abandoned children's stroller and other items discarded by people who fled the bloodbath.
A witness who declined to be named said he saw six dead or wounded people lying on the beach.
Emergency Sirens
As evening fell, the normally raucous party strip was swiftly cleared as armed police cordoned off busy streets, the pulsing lights of nightclubs replaced with strobing emergency sirens.
French tourist Sam, 24, said he was struggling to comprehend what had unfolded.
"I don't know what to think. I just feel sad for people," he said.
"At least I didn't get injured."
Another witness, Camilo Diaz, a 25-year-old student from Chile, told AFP the shots rang out for what felt like ten minutes.
"It was shocking... It seemed like a powerful weapon," she said.
Hours later, the beach was deserted.
Nearby, a woman clutched her baby tightly, and a few shellshocked witnesses were coming to grips with the horror that had unfolded.
A member of the Jewish community held his kippah -- a visible display of the faith authorities say came under attack on Sunday.
Some witnesses huddled under shop awnings, smoking and phoning worried relatives to let them know they had survived.
A small crowd gathered on the footpath outside an apartment, watching the evening news through a window.
A British tourist told AFP he saw "two shooters in black" after the gunfire broke out.
"There was a shooting, two shooters in black with semi-automatic rifles," Timothy Brant-Coles said.
Video circulating on social media showed a man wrestling a gun out of the hands of one of those men.
He and others were hailed by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as "heroes".
Video footage from Sydney’s Bondi Beach captures panicked crowds fleeing to nearby café as chaos erupted on the busy beachfront.
Blood Everywhere
One witness who declined to be named said he saw six dead or wounded people lying on the beach.
The grassy hill overlooking Bondi Beach was strewn with discarded items from people fleeing, including an abandoned children's stroller, an AFP journalist at the scene said.
Paramedics tended to wounded people lying on the grass, images broadcast by public broadcaster ABC showed.
A weapon that appeared to be a pump-action shotgun was lying by a tree by the beach.
A British tourist told AFP he saw "two shooters in black" after the gunfire broke out.
"There was a shooting, two shooters in black with semi-automatic rifles," Timothy Brant-Coles told AFP, saying he saw multiple people who had been shot and wounded.
Antisemitism
A string of antisemitic attacks has spread fear among Jewish communities in Australia following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.
The Australian government accused Iran of being behind two of the attacks, and expelled Tehran's ambassador nearly four months ago.
Tehran directed the torching of a kosher cafe in Sydney's Bondi suburb in October 2024, and a major arson attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne in December 2024, the prime minister said in August, citing intelligence findings.
No injuries were reported in the two attacks.
The head of the Australian Jewish Association said the Bondi Beach shooting was a "tragedy but entirely foreseeable".
"The Albanese government was warned so many times but failed to take adequate actions to protect the Jewish community," Robert Gregory told AFP.
A leading Australian Muslim organisation condemned the shooting as "horrific".
"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.
In April last year, a knife-wielding assailant killed six people at a shopping centre not far from Bondi Beach. The killer was found to have been suffering from schizophrenia but had stopped taking his medication, and no clear motive was identified.
In 2019, Australian citizen Brenton Tarrant killed 51 people and wounded dozens more when he attacked a mosque and Islamic centre in New Zealand's Christchurch, livestreaming the assault that was linked to white nationalism and anti-immigrant sentiment.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed)
