SYDNEY, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- A mass shooting took place on Sunday evening at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, killing at least 16 people and injuring dozens of others. This marks the deadliest shooting incident in the country since 1996.
Here's what we know so far about the shooting.
WHAT HAPPENED?
The incident occurred at around 6:40 p.m. local time (0740 GMT) at the renowned attraction in Bondi Beach, where over 1,000 people had gathered to celebrate the first day of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights.
Two gunmen, dressed in black, "mowed down" the crowd from a nearby bridge for about 10 minutes, local media reported, citing witness accounts.
Fifteen victims, aged between 10 and 87, were killed in the shooting. Over 40 people, including two police officers, were hospitalized for treatment. By Monday afternoon, 27 patients were still receiving care across Sydney, some in critical condition, a spokesperson for the medical authority said.
The attackers have been identified as Naveed Akram, 24, and his father, Sajid Akram, 50. Sajid Akram was shot dead in an exchange of gunfire with police at the scene, while his son is currently in hospital under police guard.
Mal Lanyon, police force commissioner of the state of New South Wales (NSW), where Sydney is located, declared the incident a terrorist attack on Sunday night, citing "the fact that it's the first day of Hanukkah, the types of weapons, the offenders, some of the other items that we found at the scene."
Police also found an improvised explosive device in a car linked to the attackers, said Lanyon.
A video clip that went viral on social media showed a man in civilian clothes managing to tackle one of the gunmen and disarm him. "I've got no doubt that there are many, many people alive tonight as a result of his bravery," said NSW Premier Chris Minns, calling him "a genuine hero."
During his visit to the scene on Monday morning, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that flags would fly at half-mast across the country to mourn the victims of the shooting.
ISLAMIC STATE LINKED
Albanese confirmed at a press conference that Naveed Akram had been noticed by the intelligence agency in 2019 for "associations that he had," and had been investigated for six months, without revealing further details.
Both Naveed and his father had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported, citing counter-terrorism officers. An IS flag was found in their car at Bondi Beach.
Lanyon confirmed that the 50-year-old Sajid Akram had been a licensed gun holder for the past 10 years, with no prior security incidents. "He has six firearms licensed to him. We are satisfied that we have six firearms from the scene yesterday," he said.
On Monday morning, officers from NSW Police and the Australian Federal Police were conducting a major operation at Akram's residence in Sydney's southwest suburbs, as well as at a short-term rental in the city's west where the two men had been staying.
The investigation into the motives behind the attack is still ongoing, said Lanyon.
INT'L REACTIONS
Prime Minister Albanese called the shooting "an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism that has struck the heart of our nation," vowing that Australia would do whatever is necessary to stamp out antisemitism.
"Australia will not be divided by hate or violence ... we will stand together in solidarity with Jewish Australians and with one another," he said in an X post on Monday morning.
Albanese told a news conference that the federal government would do "whatever is necessary" to prevent similar incidents from happening again and would consider reforming gun laws in the country.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack, expressing condolences to the families of the victims, and voicing solidarity with the people and government of Australia during this difficult time, his deputy spokesperson said in a statement.
U.S. President Donald Trump condemned the incident as a "horrible and purely antisemitic attack." He told Fox News that American Jews celebrating Hanukkah should not be worried about their safety following the Bondi Beach attack.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed both Albanese and the Australian government for failing to stop the spread of antisemitism in Australia. "You let the disease spread and the result is the horrific attacks on Jews we saw today," he said.
In response to the attack, Israel's National Security Council on Sunday issued a security warning for its citizens abroad, urging them to avoid large gatherings and remain vigilant around Jewish and Israeli sites. ■
