Anthony Albanese booed as thousands attend beach vigil for terrorist attack

Hanukkah celebrates the victory of light over darkness. This past week Sydney felt truly dark. But the menorah candles at Sunday’s vigil stood softly against the twilight, signaling a determination that the darkness would not win. As night fell, a spotlight shot a beam of light into the sky.

Rabbi Yehoram Ulman, whose son-in-law Eli Schlanger was killed in the attack, said, “May the memories of those we lost be fruitful, may the wounded be healed, may our pain be relieved, may all heroes be blessed and rewarded.”

The crowd numbered thousands. A woman who wanted to be known only as Della was one of the first to arrive. “I was born in Bondi,” he said. “Bondi is my heart and soul. My mother and father came from the Holocaust, they were the only survivors in the family. I don’t live nearby anymore, but she is my heart and soul… I couldn’t be anywhere else.”

They ranged from the elderly to the very young. While Governor-General Sam Mostyn spoke of barbarism and read a letter from the King, two pre-school children lay in the crowd with their mothers, listening and chewing on lollipops. “What is barbarism?” they asked. Their mother caressed their foreheads silently and sadly.

From the buildings rising above the fenced guard area, heavily armed snipers stood with their guns. The beach was full of security and police, including the Tactical Operations Unit and riot squad patrolling the area.

The most powerful people in the country attended the vigil ceremony. Minns was there wearing a kippah, as was state Finance Minister Daniel Mookhey and upper house speaker Penny Sharpe. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley arrived with NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane, who described her experience rushing to Bondi as soon as she heard about the attack last week.

Last week, gunmen opened fire just before the menorah, the Hanukkah candlestick, was to be lit at 7 p.m. Another was burned at the vigil in their memory.

The candles were lit by the heroes of the terrorist attack, including Mohammed, father of the hero Ahmed al-Ahmad; first responders and lifesavers; Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon, on behalf of the Police; and SES chaplain Vladimir Kotlyar, who treated the wounded. Relatives of some of those killed also lit candles.