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Bondi Beach Hanukkah Attack: What We Know So Far
Two gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday evening in an attack authorities have declared a terrorist incident.
At least 16 people were killed, including one of the alleged attackers, New South Wales health minister Ryan Park said on Monday. A child was among the victims.
Police said they exchanged gunfire with two men during the attack. A 50-year-old man was shot by police and died at the scene, while the second suspect, a 24-year-old man, was critically injured and remains in hospital under police guard. Authorities later confirmed the two were father and son.
NSW police commissioner Mal Lanyon said search warrants were executed at properties in Bonnyrigg and Campsie. The older suspect was a licensed firearm owner with six registered weapons. Police said one of the attackers had been known to authorities, though not as an immediate threat, and there was no prior record linking either man to earlier offences.
Fourteen victims died at the scene, while a 10-year-old girl and a 40-year-old man later succumbed to their injuries in hospital. The oldest victim was 87. Forty-two people, including four children, were taken to hospitals across Sydney. Seven remain in critical condition, while four others are critical but stable. Two injured police officers are in serious but stable condition.
Among the dead was an Israeli citizen, according to Israel’s foreign ministry. The Jewish organisation Chabad identified one victim as Rabbi Eli Schlanger, a London-born father of five. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry confirmed that its director of media was injured.
Emergency services were called to Archer Park, near the Bondi Pavilion, at 6.47pm. Video footage showed panicked crowds fleeing the beach and injured people receiving emergency treatment. Police declared there were no active shooters after 8pm.
Authorities later located two active improvised explosive devices at the scene, which were safely removed by bomb disposal units.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the attack as “an act of evil antisemitism” and a “dark moment for our nation”. King Charles III condemned the incident as a “dreadful antisemitic terrorist attack”, praising emergency responders and members of the public for preventing further loss of life.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the attack was “a terrible night for Sydney” and warned against allowing terrorism to divide Australians. Opposition leader Sussan Ley said the country was in mourning after “hateful violence struck at the heart of an iconic Australian community”.
