Father-son gun attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach during Hanukkah kills 15, injures 42; authorities declare it a terrorist incident
SYDNEY: An attack by a father and son on a Jewish celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach killed 15 people, plunging Australia into national mourning Monday.
Here’s what we know:
Gunfire at Bondi
Emergency services responded to reports of shots fired at 6:47 pm (0747 GMT) Sunday at Bondi Beach, one of the biggest tourist draws in Australia’s largest city.
The shooting took place during an annual event to celebrate Hanukkah, which police said was attended by around 1,000 people.
Casualties
Police say the attackers fired into the crowds killing 15 people, the oldest of whom was 87.
The youngest victim, a 10-year-old girl, died later in a children’s hospital.
Forty-two people were hospitalised overnight, including five in a critical condition.
Among them are two police officers wounded in a shootout with the gunmen.
The gunmen
Police say one of the assailants was a 50-year-old father who was killed in a shootout with officers.
The other was his 24-year-old son, who is in a critical condition in hospital, under police guard.
Australian media named them as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram.
Police said the pair used “long arms to fire into crowds of people”.
The father was licensed to hold six guns, all of which police believe were used in the shooting.
A number of explosive devices were also found in a car linked to the suspects.
Police do not believe others were involved.
‘Terrorism’
The attack was declared a terrorist incident at 9:36 pm by New South Wales Premier Chris Minns.
As a result, federal and state police launched a joint counter-terrorism operation.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said the father and son had possible links to the Islamic State group.
“Clearly, they were motivated by this extremist ideology,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told the broadcaster.
World reaction
The attack sparked condemnation worldwide, led by Albanese who described it as an act of “pure evil”.
US President Donald Trump said it was a “purely antisemitic attack”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Australia’s government of “pouring oil on the fire of antisemitism” by not acting strongly enough before the shooting. – AFP
