Who were the Bondi beach shooting victims? What we know

At least 15 civilians have been confirmed dead in a gun attack on Bondi beach on Sunday.

Many people were attending the event to celebrate the first day of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.

Authorities confirmed the victims included two rabbis, a Holocaust survivor and a 10-year-old girl.

Here’s what we know about what’s been detected so far:

Authorities confirmed that among the dead was a 10-year-old girl, referred to by her family as Matilda in local media.

Irina Goodhew, who organized a fundraiser for the girl’s mother and said she was the boy’s former teacher, wrote: ‘I knew her as a bright, cheerful and energetic child who brought light to everyone around her.’

Harmony Russian School of Sydney also confirmed that he was one of its students.

In the post made on the school’s Facebook account, “We share with deep sadness the news that a former student of our school died in the hospital where he was taken due to gunshot wounds.” The statement was included.

“Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to his family, friends and everyone affected by this tragic event…His memory will remain in our hearts and we honor his life and the time he spent as a part of our school family.”

Meanwhile, her aunt told ABC News that her sister, who was with Matilda when she was shot, was also trying to come to terms with the loss.

“They were like twins; they were never separated,” he told ABC.

Eli Schlanger, 41, known as the “Rabbi of Bondi,” was one of the main organizers of Sunday’s event. He was president of the local Chabad mission, an international Hasidic Jewish organization based in Brooklyn.

The death of the British-born father of five was confirmed by his cousin, Rabbi Zalman Lewis.

“My dear cousin Rabbi Eli Schlanger @bondirabbi was killed in today’s terrorist attack in Sydney,” Zalman wrote on Instagram. “He leaves behind his wife, his young children, my uncle, my aunt and my siblings… He was truly an incredible man.”

Schlanger’s youngest child is just two months old, Chabad said in a post on its website.

“He was the most religious, humane, kind and gracious person I think I have ever met,” Alex Ryvchin, of the Executive Council of Australian Jews, told reporters in Bondi on Monday morning.

The death of French national Dan Elkayam was confirmed by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot.

“We have learned with great sadness that our citizen Dan Elkayam was among those killed in the terrorist attack targeting Jewish families gathered on Sydney’s Bondi beach,” he wrote on social media. “We mourn with his family and loved ones, the Jewish community and the people of Australia.”

According to his LinkedIn profile, Elkayam was working as an IT analyst at NBCUniversal and moved to Australia last year.

The Rockdale Ilindin Football Club in Western Sydney said on its Facebook page that he was also a keen footballer and an “integral member” of our premier league team.

“He was an extremely talented and popular figure among his team-mates. We extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to Dan’s family, friends and everyone who knew him. We will miss him,” the club wrote.

Alexander Kleytman was a genocide survivor who came to Australia from Ukraine.

“I don’t have a husband. I don’t know where his body is. No one can answer me,” his wife, Larisa Kleytman, told reporters outside a Sydney hospital late Sunday.

“We were standing and suddenly there was a ‘boom boom’ sound and everyone fell to the ground. At that moment he was behind me and suddenly decided to approach me. He pushed his body up because he wanted to stay next to me,” he told the Australian.

Chabad wrote to X that Alexander “died while protecting him from the gunman’s bullets. In addition to his wife, he left behind two children and 11 grandchildren.”

The couple shared some of their life story in 2023 with Jewish Care.

“As children, both Larisa and Alexander faced the unspeakable horrors of genocide,” the health organization wrote in its annual report.

“Alex’s memories are particularly harrowing, recalling the horrific conditions in Siberia where he struggled to survive with his mother and younger brother.”

The rugby club has confirmed that former police officer Peter Meagher was working as a freelance photographer at the Hanukkah event when he was killed.

“For him it was just the disaster of being in the wrong place and at the wrong time,” Mark Harrison, chief executive of Randwick Rugby Club, wrote on his website.

“’Marzo, as he was universally known, was a much-loved figure and an absolute legend at our club, one of the heart and soul figures of Randwick Rugby through his decades of volunteer involvement.”

The club said he spent almost four decades in the NSW Police Force where he was “highly respected by his colleagues”.

The club said: “The tragic irony is that he remained on the dangerous front lines for so long as a Police Officer and was shot in retirement while taking pictures in his passionate role, it is truly difficult to understand.” he said.

According to an interview he gave to the ABC exactly a year ago, Reuven Morrison emigrated to Australia from the former Soviet Union at a young age in the 1970s.

“We came here with the view that Australia is the safest country in the world and that Jews will not face this kind of anti-Semitism in the future, that we can raise our children in a safe environment,” he told the national broadcaster.

Chabad, which confirmed his death, said he was a long-time resident of Melbourne but “discovered his Jewish identity in Sydney”.

“He is a successful businessman whose primary goal is to donate his profits to charities he loves, particularly Chabad of Bondi,” the organization wrote to X.

Rabbi Yaakov Levitan’s death was confirmed by Chabad, which described him as a “popular coordinator” of activities in Sydney.

He also served as secretary of the Sydney Beth Din, a rabbinical court, and worked at the BINA Center, which describes itself as a center of Jewish learning.

Chabad said Tibor Weitzen was at the event with his wife and grandchildren when he was killed while trying to protect a family friend.

The 78-year-old was a “beloved” member of the Bondi Chabad Synagogue, according to the organization.

His grandson, Leor Amzalak, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that he was “the best you could ask for”.

He said Mr Weitzen emigrated to Australia from Israel in 1988.

“He only saw the best in people and he will be greatly missed,” he said he told the publisher.