Sydney's Bondi Beach on Sunday evening saw Australia's deadliest mass shooting since the Port Arthur massacre, when a father–son duo opened fire on crowds at a Hanukkah event.
At least 15 people, including a child, were killed as gunfire erupted from a pedestrian footbridge near Campbell Parade, triggering panic among locals and tourists gathered by the Sea.
Police said 50-year-old Sajid Akram and his 24-year-old son, Naveed Akram, fired into the crowd from a raised pedestrian boardwalk overlooking the beach.
How the attack unfolded?
Armed with long-barrelled guns, the attackers shot at people for nearly 10 minutes, triggering panic as crowds fled across the packed beachfront. As shots rang out, some people hid in nearby shops and buildings, while others sought cover behind beach facilities.
Sajid Akram was shot dead in a gunfight with police at the scene, while Naveed was arrested and taken to hospital, where he remains in a critical but stable condition under police guard.
Social media footage showed moments of bravery amid the terror, including a bystander who confronted one of the gunmen and wrestled a weapon away.
By the time the area was secured, the beachfront was littered with discarded shoes, blankets and picnic items, stark reminders of the sudden violence that shattered across a grassy hill overlooking Bondi Beach.
Prime Minister Albanese condemned the shooting, saying, “What we saw yesterday was an act of pure evil, an act of antisemitism, an act of terrorism on our shores,” as he laid flowers at the Bondi Pavilion.
Who were the shooters, Naveed Akram and Sajid Akram?
The alleged assailants were a father–son duo. The father, Sajid Akram originally hailed from Pakistan, CBS news reported. Police said investigations are ongoing but noted the attack was clearly intended to terrorise Australia’s Jewish community.
Sajid, arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa, which was converted into a partner visa in 2001. He has since remained in the country on a resident return visa, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said. While Burke did not confirm Sajid’s country of origin, it has been widely reported that he immigrated from Pakistan.
His son, Naveed Akram, is an Australian citizen born in 2001. Anthony Albanese said Naveed had come to the attention of Australia’s domestic intelligence agency, ASIO, in October 2019. However, after an assessment, authorities found “no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence.”
Albanese said ASIO’s 2019 assessment was triggered by concerns about Naveed’s associations at the time, rather than his own behaviour or character. “The assessment was made because of the son’s associations that he had, at that time, and the investigation went for a period of six months,” he said.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Naveed was an unemployed bricklayer who lost his job around two months ago after his employer became insolvent.
Naveed’s mother, Verena, said he had been actively looking for work. She described her son as quiet and not particularly social, adding that he did not spend much time online. Naveed, who attended Cabramatta High School, enjoyed activities such as fishing, scuba diving, swimming and exercising, she said.
Despite his unemployment, Albanese reiterated that ASIO had assessed Naveed as posing no indication of a threat of violence, stressing again that earlier concerns were linked to his associates rather than his own conduct.
Explosives, weapons and terror links
Hours after the shooting, police found a homemade bomb in a car parked near the beach, saying the “improvised explosive device” had likely been planted by the attackers.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported the attackers had possible links to the Islamic State group. An ISIS flag was also reportedly found inside the vehicle, ABC news said.
Police recovered four firearms at the scene and later seized two more weapons from a rented room in Campsie.
Last contact with Family
Naveed’s mother, Verena, said her son last contacted the family on Sunday morning, hours before the attack.
“He rings me up [on Sunday] and said, Mum, I just went for a swim. I went scuba diving. We're going ... to eat now, and then this morning, and we're going to stay home now because it's very hot,” she told The Sydney Morning Herald, adding that he said he was in Jervis Bay with his father.
She said she could not identify her son in images from the scene. “He doesn't have a firearm. He doesn't even go out. He doesn't mix around with friends. He doesn't drink, he doesn't smoke, he doesn't go to bad places ... he goes to work, he comes home, he goes to exercise, and that's it,” she said. “Anyone would wish to have a son like my son ... he's a good boy.”
The 'hero bystander'
Amid the chaos, several bystanders rushed toward the danger to help victims. One man, identified by local media as fruit seller Ahmed el Ahmed, was seen in footage confronting one of the attackers.
The 43-year-old wrestled a gun from the assailant and pointed it at him as he backed away. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Ahmed’s cousin Jozay Alkanj said his relative feared for his life when the shooting began.
“He was very scared [and said] I’m gonna die,” Alkanj recalled. “He said I’m going to die, please see my family [and tell them] that I went down to save people’s lives.”
Speaking in Arabic outside the hospital, he said his son was in good spirits while awaiting surgery. “He said he thanks God that he was able to do this, to help innocent people and to save people from these monsters, these killers. He is a hero.”
Ahmed’s father later described him as a hero. Speaking in Arabic outside the hospital, he said his son was in good spirits while awaiting surgery.
“He said he thanks God that he was able to do this, to help innocent people and to save people from these monsters, these killers. He is a hero.”
'Pouring oil on the fire of antisemitism'
Australia lowered flags to half-mast to mourn the victims. Anthony Albanese said the government will push for tougher gun laws following the deadly antisemitic terror attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, signalling a possible tightening of Australia’s already strict firearms regime.
Albanese said the issue would be taken up at a National Cabinet meeting, with the Prime Minister and state and territory leaders agreeing to pursue major changes to strengthen gun control and bring consistency across states after it emerged that one of the attackers legally owned six firearms.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Australia’s government of “pouring oil on the fire of antisemitism” in the months leading up to the attack.
US President Donald Trump called it a “purely antisemitic attack.”
Mass shootings have been rare in Australia since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, which led to sweeping gun law reforms. However, Albanese said tougher gun laws may now be needed in the wake of the Bondi Beach attack.