Two alleged gunmen who killed 15 people at a Jewish Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach were a father and son, police said on Monday, as Australia began mourning victims of its worst gun violence in almost three decades.
The father, a 50-year-old, was killed at the scene, taking the death toll to 16, while his 24-year-old son remains in critical condition in hospital, police said at a press conference.
The pair were identified by state broadcaster ABC and other local media as Sajid Akram and Naveed Akram.
Officials have described Sunday’s shooting as a targeted antisemitic attack.
Police probe background of suspects
Police did not officially release the shooters’ names but said the father had held a firearms licence since 2015 and owned six licensed weapons. They added they were confident only two attackers were involved.
Home Minister Tony Burke said the father arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa, while his son is an Australian-born citizen. Police did not provide details of the weapons used, though videos appeared to show a bolt-action rifle and a shotgun.
"We are very much working through the background of both persons. At this stage, we know very little about them," New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters.
A heavy police presence remained at the suspects’ home in Bonnyrigg, about 36 km west of Sydney’s central business district.
Victims, injuries and scene of chaos
Forty people remain in hospital, including two police officers who are in a serious but stable condition. The victims ranged in age from 10 to 87.
Witnesses said the attack at the famed beach, which was crowded on a hot evening, lasted about 10 minutes, sending hundreds of people fleeing across the sand and into nearby streets.
Around 1,000 people had attended the Hanukkah event, which was held in a small park off the beach, police said.
Bystander hailed as hero
A bystander who was captured on video tackling and disarming an armed man during the attack has been hailed as a hero.
7News Australia identified him as Ahmed al Ahmed, citing a relative. The 43-year-old fruit shop owner was shot twice and underwent surgery. A fundraising page for him had raised more than A$350,000 ($233,000) by Monday afternoon.
Footage shared widely on social media showed the unarmed man running towards the gunman from behind, grabbing him by the neck, pulling away his rifle and forcing him to the ground before pointing the weapon back at him.
7News spoke to a man named Mustapha, who said he was Ahmed’s cousin.
"He's in hospital and we don't know exactly what's going on inside," he said.
"We do hope he will be fine. He's a hero 100 per cent," he added.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also described Ahmed as a “hero”.
Eyewitness accounts and mourning
Bondi local Morgan Gabriel, 27, said she initially thought she heard fireworks before people began running.
"I sheltered about six or seven. Two of them were actually my close friends, and the rest were just people that were on the street. But people, their phones had been left down the beach, and everyone was just trying to get away," she said.
"It's a very sad time this morning... Normally, like on a Monday or any morning, it's packed. People are swimming, surfing, running. So this is very, very quiet. And there's definitely a solemn sort of vibe."
A makeshift memorial with flowers and Israeli and Australian flags was set up at the Bondi pavilion, while police and private Jewish security guarded the area as mourners paid respects.
PM signals review of gun laws
Prime Minister Albanese said his government would consider tougher gun laws following the attack, including limits on the number of guns an individual can own and periodic reviews of licences.
"What we saw yesterday was an act of pure evil, an act of antisemitism, an act of terrorism on our shores in an iconic Australian location," he told reporters.
"The Jewish community are hurting today. Today, all Australians wrap our arms around them and say, we stand with you. We will do whatever is necessary to stamp out antisemitism. It is a scourge, and we will eradicate it together."
Community grief
Rabbi Mendel Kastel, whose brother-in-law Eli Schlanger was among those killed, said the community would endure.
“You can very easily become very angry and try to blame people, turn on people but that’s not what this is about. It’s about a community,” he said.
“We need to step up at a time like this, be there for each other, and come together. And we will, and we will get through this, and we know that. The Australian community will help us do it,” he added.
Local woman Danielle, who declined to give her surname, described racing to find her daughter during the chaos.
"I heard there was a shooting so I bolted there to get my daughter, I could hear gunshots, I saw bodies on the ground. We are used to being scared, we have felt this way since October 7."
Mass shootings are rare in Australia. Sunday’s attack was the worst since 1996, when 35 people were killed at Port Arthur in Tasmania. Major cities including Berlin, London and New York stepped up security around Hanukkah events following the Bondi shooting.
World leaders condemn the attack
Authorities said they were confident only two attackers were involved in the incident, after previously saying they were checking whether a third offender was involved.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Bondi Beach on Monday morning to lay flowers near the scene of the attack.
Albanese urged Australians to light a candle in solidarity with the Jewish community "to show that light will indeed defeat darkness - part of what Hanukkah celebrates", he said.
Albanese said several world leaders including US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron had reached out and offered condolences and support.
"In Australia, there was a terrible attack ... and that was an antisemitic attack, obviously," Trump said during a Christmas reception at the White House on Sunday, paying his respects to victims of the attack at Bondi and another shooting at Rhode Island's Brown University.
Sunday's shootings were the most serious in a string of antisemitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars in Australia since the beginning of Israel's war in Gaza in October 2023.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had warned Albanese that Australia's support for Palestinian statehood would fuel antisemitism.
In August, Australia accused Iran of directing at least two antisemitic attacks and gave Tehran's ambassador a week to leave the country.