‘We have survived for thousands of years… light will always prevail’
Minutes before 18:47 local time, the time of the attack yesterday, a group of Jewish people set up a large menorah by the bouquets on Bondi Beach and placed candles.
They announced they would light candles tonight – a ritual associated with the Jewish festival Hanukkah – to remember those killed in the attack.
“We invite people to take the light, to spread peace and tolerance. We have survived for thousands of years…light will always prevail,” says one of the men.
Then the group led the crowd in the spontaneous singing of several traditional Jewish songs.
As their voices soared, some in the crowd sobbed as they sang and clapped along.
Then they continued with the Australian anthem, before singing more Jewish songs.
Gunmen had Islamic State links – reportspublished at 12:52
Image source,EPA/ShutterstockThe two gunmen involved in yesterday’s shooting have been named by local media as 50-year-old Sajid Akram, who died at the scene, and his 24-year-old son Naveed Akram – who remains in hospital in a critical condition.
Here’s what we know about the attackers so far:
- Sajid Akram arrived in Australia on a student visa in 1998, which was transferred in 2001 to a partner visa and later resident return visas
- He had a firearms licence for recreational hunting and was a member of a gun club
- Naveed Akram first came to authorities’ attention in October 2019butAustralian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said an “assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence”
- The Australian broadcaster ABC reports Naveed Akram, who is an Australian-born citizen, was examined over his close ties to a Sydney-based Islamic State (IS) terrorism cell
- ABC also reports that counter terrorism police believe the gunmen had pledged allegiance to the IS terrorist group
- Police believe the gunmen had prepared for the attackat a short-term rental property around a 30-minute drive from Bondi Beach. A single-storey grey building in Campsie has become one of the main focuses of the police investigation
- Officers raided the gunmen’s family home last night, around an hour’s drive away. One of their former neighbours told the BBC that when she saw the news of the shooting, “I thought oh my goodness, it can’t be them”
UK chief rabbi says family spent ’15 terrifying minutes hiding’ during shootingpublished at 12:48
Breaking
Image source,Getty ImagesChief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis says his cousin and his cousin’s wife spent “15 terrifying minutes hiding under a doughnut stand as terrorists were shooting at them and those around them” on Bondi Beach.
“Once again, Jews were targeted for the simple act of gathering together, visibly and peacefully, as Jews,” he says in his Thought for the Day on BBC Radio 4.
“On Hanukkah, Jews around the world declare: we are here, we belong, and we will not hide who we are.”
This period in the aftermath of the shooting “demands moral clarity”, he says.
“Jews have lived with security concerns for as long as I can remember, but the fact that today every public Jewish gathering must be weighed for risk is a sign of something deeply wrong.
“A society in which a minority must calculate whether it is safe to be seen together in public, is a society that is failing all of its citizens.”
Grandfather died shielding a friend – reportspublished at 12:45
We earlier reported details of some of the 15 people killed in the Bondi Beach shooting.
Since then, another victim has been named in local media as Tibor Weitzen.
He’s a grandfather believed to be in his 70s and a member of the Bondi Chabad Synagogue, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Col Live, a Chabad news outlet, reports that he went to the Hanukkah event with his wife and grandchildren, and died trying to shield a family friend.
‘Just a happy kid’: Aunt remembers 10-year-old girl killed in beach shootingpublished at 12:39
As we’ve been reporting, 15 people were killed in yesterday’s attack – among them a 10-year-old girl who has been identified in local media as Matilda.
Matilda’s aunt Lina has spoken to ABC News, external
‘No more hate, more love’: People in Sydney gather to mournpublished at 12:35
Tessa Wong
Reporting from the Bondi Pavillion
Image source,Tessa Wong/BBCWe are just coming up to 18:47 here in Bondi – the time of the attack yesterday – and a sizeable crowd of several hundred has grown at the Bondi Pavilion, the local landmark building at the beach.
Many are wearing black, while some openly weep.
Jewish and Australian flags have been hung up on the closed gates to the pavilion, as people come forward to lay wreaths and bouquets of flowers.
Some have also laid pebbles from the beach and candles.
The pile of bouquets is now enormous, and at the centre is a handwritten sign saying: “We stand united, no more hate, more love”, ending with a smiley face.
The mood is sombre and quiet, even as a police helicopter loudly buzzes above us, reminding us of the tight security presence that includes many police officers lining the road, watching the proceedings.
Earlier I heard a group of people break out spontaneously in a mournful Jewish song, and several in the crowd joined them.
This is a local community deep in the throes of grief as they grapple with the aftermath of a horrific shooting.
about her niece.
“Matilda was very friendly, she loves school, and has a lot of friends,” she says.
“She’s just a happy kid, always gives me cuddles.”
She adds that Matilda had been taken to the Sydney Children’s Hospital at Randwick but had lost a lot of blood and could not be saved.
Lina also said Matilda’s younger sister was present when her sister was injured but is physically unharmed.
“She’s in absolute shock and stress, she’s missing her sister badly,” Lina said.
