Sydney Bondi Beach shooting : Father and Son Behind Deadly Bondi Beach Jewish Festival Shooting: Australian Police

Australian police on Monday said a father and son were responsible for the deadly shooting at a Jewish festival at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, an attack that killed 15 people and left the nation in mourning after its worst mass shooting in nearly three decades.

The father, a 50-year-old man, was shot dead at the scene, taking the total death toll to 16, while his 24-year-old son remains in critical condition in hospital, police said. State broadcaster ABC and other local media identified the pair as Sajid Akram and Naveed Akram, respectively.

Authorities have described the incident as a targeted antisemitic attack.

Forty people remain hospitalised, including two police officers who are in a serious but stable condition. The victims range in age from 10 to 87 years, police said.

The shooting took place during a Hanukkah celebration attended by around 1,000 people at a small park near the popular beach. Witnesses said the attack lasted about 10 minutes, triggering panic as hundreds of people fled across the sand and into nearby streets.

A bystander who tackled and disarmed one of the gunmen during the attack has been widely praised for preventing further loss of life. According to 7News Australia, the man was identified as Ahmed al Ahmed, a 43-year-old fruit shop owner. A relative told the broadcaster that he was shot twice and later underwent surgery. By Monday afternoon, a fundraising campaign set up for him had raised more than A$350,000.

Police declined to officially name the suspects but confirmed that the father had held a firearms licence since 2015 and owned six licensed weapons. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the father arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa, while his son was born in Australia and is an Australian citizen.

Although police did not specify the weapons used, videos from the scene appeared to show the attackers firing a bolt-action rifle and a shotgun.

“We are still working through the background of both individuals. At this stage, we know very little about them,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters.

Bondi resident Morgan Gabriel, 27, said she initially mistook the gunfire for fireworks before realising something was wrong. “People just started running,” she said, adding that she sheltered several people in her home as they tried to escape the chaos.

A makeshift memorial featuring flowers and Australian and Israeli flags has been set up near the Bondi Pavilion. An online condolence book has also been opened, while police and private Jewish security guards remain deployed in the area as mourners gather to pay their respects.

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