Jewish community targeted in Australia’s deadliest shooting in decades

The first day of Hanukkah was a sweltering day in Sydney; It was the perfect afternoon to spend at Australia’s most iconic beach.

More than 1,000 people were enjoying a festival marking the occasion on a grassy field in Bondi: children wandered around with face paint, crowds snaked between food trucks and many enjoyed live entertainment while soaking up the last rays of the sun.

Then, just before 7pm local time, gunshots were heard.

Gunmen opened fire on a fenced-in crowd from a small pedestrian bridge just meters from a children’s playground. A car full of improvised bombs was parked nearby, but the bombs never exploded.

One participant, who identified himself only as Barry, described watching people around him get shot as hundreds of beachgoers began screaming and running across the park to escape the attack.

“There was mayhem and chaos,” he told the BBC.

One of the videos showed a man called a “real hero” by state officials jumping from the back of a parked car, wrestling the gun of one of the attackers and pushing him away.

“It was an incredible scene… in today’s day and age, families and children in Bondi can be completely destroyed because they are Jewish,” Barry said.

At least 11 people were killed and more than two dozen were injured, including a child. One of the gunmen was also killed by police, another was in critical condition and police said they were investigating whether a third party helped carry out the attack.

This is an unusual and devastating shock for Australia; It is the deadliest shooting in this country since the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.

This attack, which killed 35 people, was a turning point and prompted the government to impose the strictest gun control measures in the world.

We’ve only had a few mass shootings since then; many of these were horrific acts of domestic violence; not public attacks like today.

It was quickly declared a terrorist attack by the police; This attack comes at a time when anti-Semitic attacks have increased in Australia since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October and the subsequent Israeli attack on Gaza.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called it a “diabolical act of antisemitism” and a “despicable act of violence and hatred”.

But it has been accused by some, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of failing to address the growing trend of antisemitism there.

“With countless warning signs, the Australian government must come to its senses!” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar wrote about X.

Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jews, told Sky News on Sunday night that the Jewish community’s “worst fears” had come true.

“It’s been bubbling under the surface for a long time, and now it’s actually happened.”

Robert Gregory of the Australian Jewish Association said in a statement that tonight many Jews will be thinking about whether they have a future in Australia.

“It is devastating to be confronted with this horrific act of antisemitic violence during the Jewish festival of light and hope. In moments like these, we stand close together,” the Jewish Council of Australia said in a statement. he said.

There are many things the police cannot or will not say yet.

One question they answered was that this was very clearly a terrorist attack.

It is still unclear who the gunmen are (or even how many there are) and their motives. They said one of the attackers was known to the police but that such a thing was not on their radar.

Out of respect for the families who are still informed, authorities are not answering any questions about the deaths.

“It’s too early to release this information,” was the most common refrain at the news conference late Sunday night.

But when NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon failed to respond, he tried to offer reassurance instead. He said the police are doing their best in this investigation.

He called on the public to remain calm and avoid spreading misinformation online, including speculating about the victims and perpetrators of the attack.

“I want to make sure there will be no penalty,” Commissioner Lanyon said.

Local politicians also asked people not to share graphic images of the attack on social media.

After the conflict, sirens were blaring in the city and the area around Bondi was filled with police cars and helicopters.

There we found Fin Green, who was using FaceTime with his family in the UK and saw the shooting taking place outside his window. Unsure of what had happened, he hid in his closet for an hour and a half until he felt it was safe to come out.

Broadcast journalist Danny Clayton, who was on the beach and witnessed the events from the Bondi Pavilion, said some people crashed their cars while trying to escape.

Many people in the area had similar stories. Restaurant employee William Doliente Petty said he was serving someone when he heard gunshots. “The whole store stood up and we ran to the back exit.”

Australia prides itself on being a cheerful and safe country, and Bondi Beach has long been a symbol of this. But this image has been shattered and residents do not believe it.

Sunday’s attack also came less than two years after another nearby tragedy. In April last year, there was a deadly mass stabbing at nearby Bondi Junction. Many surprised people said the same words we hear again and again today: “This kind of thing doesn’t happen here.”

Additional reporting by Katy Watson and Tabby Wilson.