Religious and community leaders across Australia called for unity against antisemitism Monday following the Bondi Beach shooting that killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited the site to lay flowers and condemn the terrorism while flags flew at half-mast nationwide after the deadliest gun violence in decades.
Leaders from Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and other faith communities gathered to reject the hatred displayed during Sunday evening’s attack on approximately 1,000 people celebrating the Jewish holiday. The interfaith response emphasized that violence targeting any religious community threatens all communities. Many pointed to 43-year-old Ahmed al Ahmed, a Muslim who wrestled a gun from one attacker despite being shot, as embodying the solidarity needed to oppose extremism.
Father-son shooters Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24, carried out the roughly ten-minute assault before security forces killed the elder and critically wounded the younger. The father’s death brought total fatalities to sixteen. Community leaders stressed that the attackers’ actions did not represent any legitimate religious or cultural tradition but rather represented hatred that all decent people must actively oppose.
Forty people remained hospitalized, including two police officers whose serious injuries had stabilized. Victims ranged from age ten to 87, representing multiple generations of Australian Jewish families targeted for their faith. Religious leaders pledged to increase interfaith cooperation and security coordination to protect all communities from similar attacks while maintaining the open character of religious observances.
This incident marks Australia’s worst gun violence in nearly three decades and has galvanized diverse communities to demonstrate solidarity. Rallies and vigils brought together people of all backgrounds to mourn victims and recommit to pluralism and mutual respect. As investigations continued, the unified community response provided hope that hatred would not divide Australian society despite the tragedy at one of the nation’s most iconic locations.