Australia’s leaders have agreed to tighten gun legislation after the nation’s deadliest mass shooting in almost 30 years, when a father and son opened fire at a Jewish festival at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, killing 15 people, including a child.
The alleged attackers, identified as a father and his son, fired into crowds gathered at the beach to mark the start of Hanukkah on Sunday evening, reports RTE.
The father was shot dead at the scene, bringing the death toll to 16, while his 24-year-old son remains in a critical condition in hospital but is expected to survive, according to police.
Australian media named the pair as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram, reports RTE.
Police confirmed the 50-year-old father was legally licensed to possess six firearms, which they believe were used during the attack.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese convened an urgent meeting with leaders of Australia’s states and territories, agreeing with them “to strengthen gun laws across the nation”, reports RTE.
Mr Albanese’s office said they agreed to explore measures including improved background checks for gun owners, banning non-nationals from obtaining firearms licences and restricting the types of weapons that can be legally owned.
Mass shootings have been uncommon in Australia since a lone gunman killed 35 people in the tourist town of Port Arthur in 1996, reports RTE.
That atrocity led to sweeping gun control reforms that were long regarded internationally as a benchmark.
The measures included a nationwide gun buyback scheme, a national firearms register and strict limits on ownership of semi-automatic weapons, reports RTE.
However, Sunday’s attack has prompted renewed questions about how the father and son — who public broadcaster ABC reported may have had links to the Islamic State group — acquired their weapons.
Officials have described the shooting as a targeted anti-Semitic attack, reports RTE.
The attackers, armed with what police described as “long guns”, opened fire on more than 1,000 people attending a Jewish festival in the Archer Park area of the popular beach at 6.47pm local time on Sunday.
Police said 40 people remain hospitalised following the attack, including two police officers who are in a serious but stable condition, reports RTE.
The victims ranged in age from 10 to 87 years old.
Witnesses said the assault at the iconic beach lasted around 10 minutes, sending hundreds fleeing across the sand and into surrounding streets, reports RTE.
Police said approximately 1,000 people had been attending the targeted Hanukkah event, which took place in a small park beside the beach.
While police did not officially release the names of the attackers, national broadcaster ABC and other media outlets identified them as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram, reports RTE.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the father arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa, while his son was born in Australia and is a citizen.
Police declined to provide specific details about the firearms used, but footage from the scene showed the men firing what appeared to be a bolt-action rifle and a shotgun, reports RTE.
“We are very much working through the background of both persons,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said. “At this stage, we know very little about them”, reports RTE.
At the suspects’ home in the suburb of Bonnyrigg, police maintained a heavy presence, with a cordon placed around several neighbouring houses.
Authorities said they were confident only two attackers were involved, after initially saying they were checking whether a third person may have taken part, reports RTE.
A bystander who was filmed tackling and disarming one of the gunmen during the attack has been praised as a hero whose actions saved lives.
Ahmed al Ahmed, a 43-year-old fruit shop owner, was shot twice and has since undergone surgery, reports RTE.
Mr al Ahmed’s family said he remains in hospital with gunshot wounds to his arm and hand, but is in “good spirits”.
A fundraising campaign set up for him has raised more than A$350,000 (€198,539), reports RTE.
Mr al Ahmed’s father described his son as a “hero of Australia” who instinctively sought to protect others.
Speaking to ABC Australia through a translator, Mohamed Fateh al Ahmed said: “His friend told him, ‘Let’s go have coffee at Bondi'”, reports RTE.
“They got there, and were shocked to see armed men firing weapons at terrorists”, reports RTE.
“Their lives were in danger. He noticed one of the armed men in a distance, from him hiding behind a tree”, reports RTE.
“My son is a hero, he served with the police and in the central security forces, and he has the impulse to protect people”, reports RTE.
“When he saw people laying on the ground, and the blood everywhere, immediately his conscience and his soul compelled him to pounce on one of the terrorists and to rid him of his weapon”, reports RTE.
“I feel pride and honour, because my son is a hero of Australia”, reports RTE.
Bondi resident Morgan Gabriel, 27, said she had been on her way to a nearby cinema when she heard what she initially thought were fireworks, before people began running up her street.
“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,” she said, reports RTE.
“But people, their phones had been left down the beach and everyone was just trying to get away,” she added, reports RTE.
A makeshift memorial of flowers, alongside Israeli and Australian flags, was established at the Bondi pavilion.
An online book of condolences was also opened, reports RTE.
Police and private Jewish security guards wearing earpieces were stationed nearby as mourners gathered to pay their respects and lay flowers.
A grassy hill overlooking Bondi Beach was littered with belongings left behind by people fleeing the attack, including a camping table and blankets, reports RTE.
Flip-flops, trainers and thermos flasks were gathered and lined up in the sand for collection.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Bondi Beach to lay flowers close to where the attack took place, reports RTE.
“What we saw yesterday was an act of pure evil, an act of anti-Semitism, an act of terrorism on our shores in an iconic Australian location,” Mr Albanese told reporters, reports RTE.
He said: “The Jewish community are hurting today. Today, all Australians wrap our arms around them and say ‘we stand with you’”, reports RTE.
“We will do whatever is necessary to stamp out anti-Semitism”, reports RTE.
“It is a scourge, and we will eradicate it together”, reports RTE.
Mr Albanese later called on Australians to light a candle in solidarity with the Jewish community “to show that light will indeed defeat darkness – part of what Hanukkah celebrates”, reports RTE.
He said the country is mourning the victims by flying flags at half-mast.
The prime minister said several world leaders, including US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, had contacted him to offer condolences and support, reports RTE.
The shootings were the most serious among a series of anti-Semitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and vehicles in Australia since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had warned Mr Albanese that Australia’s support for Palestinian statehood would fuel anti-Semitism, reports RTE.
In August, Australia accused Iran of directing at least two anti-Semitic attacks and gave Tehran’s ambassador one week to leave the country, reports RTE.
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