Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Syrian immigrant Ahmad al-Ahmad overnight, between Monday and Tuesday, after al-Ahmed subdued one of the terrorists in the deadly attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, where at least 15 people were killed. During the visit, held during daytime hours in Sydney, Albanese described al-Ahmed as an “Australian hero,” praised his courage and thanked him “on behalf of all Australians.”
“It was a great honor,” Albanese said outside the hospital. “He is a true Australian hero. Very humble. He was at the beach with friends and just wanted to buy a coffee when the shooting began. He chose to act, and his courage is an inspiration to all Australians.” Albanese said he also met al-Ahmed’s parents, who traveled from Syria to visit him. “They are proud parents,” he said.
Meanwhile, ABC News reported, citing security sources, that the purpose of a trip to the Philippines taken last month by the two terrorists involved in the attack was to undergo “military-style training.” The father, Sajid Akram, who was killed at the scene, and his son, Naveed Akram, 24, who was seriously wounded and hospitalized, visited Manila in early November. Investigators are now examining whether the two had ties to an international jihadist network.
Islamic state-linked networks are known to operate in the Philippines and have wielded some influence in the south of the country. They have been reduced to weakened cells operating in the southern Mindanao island in recent years, far from the scale of influence they wielded during the 2017 Marawi siege, Reuters reported.
Singing Jewish songs at the site of the attack in Bondi Beach
Shortly after Albanese’s hospital visit, police provided an update on the investigation. They declined to officially confirm the report about the purpose of the Philippines trip, but said findings so far indicate the attack was inspired by ISIS ideology. Two handmade ISIS flags were found in the attackers’ vehicle, along with improvised explosive devices. The suspects’ connection to ISIS remains the focus of the investigation.
After the attack, Australia’s counterterrorism unit assessed that the two had pledged allegiance to the terror group before the massacre. Authorities continue to believe, as Albanese said in an interview with ABC, that the attackers acted alone and not as part of a terror cell or network.
Albanese said earlier that Naveed Akram was not on the watch list of Australia’s domestic intelligence agency, ASIO, though a 2019 ASIO investigation did include questioning his father, Sajid. According to Albanese, there were no indications at the time that the father had undergone radicalization. Sajid Akram became an Australian citizen after arriving on a student visa in 1998, while his son was born in Australia.
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Mourning at the site of the antisemitic attack in Australia's Bondi Beach
( Photo: Hollie Adams/Reuters)
Meanwhile, it emerged Monday night that more than 1.5 million Australian dollars, about $1 million, have already been donated to Ahmad al-Ahmad, the Syrian Muslim immigrant who risked his life, attacked one of the terrorists from behind, wrested his weapon away and in doing so saved many lives, becoming a hero worldwide. Al-Ahmad, 43, a father of two who was himself shot during the attack and hit by five bullets, remains hospitalized and will require a lengthy rehabilitation. A GoFundMe campaign launched on his behalf has drawn donations from around the world, including $99,999, the maximum amount allowed on the site, from Jewish American billionaire Bill Ackman.
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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Syrian immigrant Ahmad al-Ahmad in the hospital
(Photo: Office of the prime minister)
Authorities in New South Wales said 24 people wounded in the antisemitic terror attack remain hospitalized, with 12 in serious or critical condition, including children. Naveed Akram is also hospitalized, and officials said they are waiting for his condition to stabilize before filing formal charges.
So far, the names of nine of the 15 people killed in the Bondi Beach terror attack have been released: Chabad emissary Rabbi Eli Schlanger, 41, one of the organizers of the Hanukkah celebration at the beach; Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman, 87, whose wife said he was murdered while trying to protect her; Tibor Weitzman who according to reports was also shot while defending his wife, who survived; Dan Elkayam, 27, a Jewish French citizen who immigrated to Sydney about a year ago; Rabbi Yaakov Halevi Levitin, also a Chabad emissary; Reuben Morrison, 62, originally from the former Soviet Union and a member of the Australian Chabad community; former police officer Peter Maiger, a retired New South Wales police officer who was photographing the event; Marika Fogni, 82; and and 10-year-old Matilda, whose family released her photo but withheld her last name.
Hundreds of mourners continue to gather at Bondi Beach, laying flowers, dolls and candles. Israeli and Australian flags hang at the site, where visitors stand mostly in silence, some arm in arm. Some were filmed singing “Oseh shalom bimromav,” including non-Jewish residents of Sydney. Rabbis from the local community and representatives of the ZAKA disaster response organization have also been present.
Yael, an Israeli who lives in the nearby Rose Bay neighborhood, told Ynet that she came to the site for the first time since the attack because she felt she wanted to be part of it. Like many others, she arrived with a bouquet of flowers, which she placed alongside the thousands already there. “I felt a need to be with the community, so I went to Bondi Beach,” she said. “Police closed the main street near the beach, and again this morning hundreds gathered there to sing songs, lay flowers and be together. Chabad emissaries even handed out sufganiyot to those coming and going.”
Authorities in New South Wales also distributed small posters along the beach bearing QR codes that can be scanned by phone. The codes link to a government website reviewing the attack, listing mental health support phone numbers, providing the address of the physical memorial site at the beach and offering a lost-and-found service for those who lost valuable belongings while fleeing the scene, which were collected by local authorities.
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Flags are flown at half-mast in Melbourne following the attack on Sydney's Bondi Beach
It is evident that Australian police and law enforcement agencies are now seeking to protect the Jewish community. Since the attack, Jews and Israelis have reported seeing an increased security presence in their neighborhoods. “There are a lot of patrol cars here, far more than usual, patrolling the city streets, especially in neighborhoods with larger Jewish populations,” Yael said.
Roni, another Israeli who visited the site, told Ynet: “It’s a moving and heartbreaking event. You really see people here from all walks of Australian society. There are people dressed in black, which is not a common sight in an area like Bondi Beach, known for its beach life and color. You have to remember that for Australians this is a regular workday, and people left their jobs to come and support our community here.
“Two Christian women came to hug me and told me they were with us and deeply sorry about what happened, that it broke their hearts. I started crying, they hugged me and I hugged them. It was very moving, because in the Jewish community we feel, or at least felt until now, that we were alone here, and suddenly we are receiving hugs and messages from colleagues at work expressing their sorrow.”
Shayna Gutnick, the daughter of Reuven Morrison, said her father died a hero after being filmed throwing a brick at one of the terrorists before being shot. “If there was one way for him to go, it was in a fight against a terrorist,” she told CBS. “He fell while fighting and defending the people he loved most.”