Funerals begin after Bondi Chanukah massacre

Get The AJN Newsletter by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

The first victim from the terrorist massacre at Bondi Beach on Sunday was being laid to rest as The AJN went to press at midday on Wednesday.

Rabbi Eli Schlanger was one of 16 victims (at time of press) when two gunmen – a father and son identified as Sajid and Naveed Akram – began firing on Chabad of Bondi’s Chanukah by the Sea event on Sunday evening.

Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, Chabad of Bondi’s general manager, was scheduled to be buried later on Wednesday, while ten-year-old Matilda Britain’s funeral was scheduled for today (Thursday).

The other victims of the massacre included a Holocaust survivor, an elderly couple who tried to disarm one of the gunmen, and young French football player who have moved to Sydney for work. Alt least one victim was not Jewish.

Around a thousand people were at the event being held on a grass area near the children’s playground when the alleged gunmen opened fire at around 6:47pm. A bar mitzvah was also taking place at the Bondi Pavilion nearby at the time of the attack.

Video footage showed the gunmen positioned on a footbridge, firing into the crowd below. There was panic and confusion as people ran across the sand, seeking cover and rushing into nearby restaurants to escape the violence.

NSW Premier Chris Minns admitted to Sky News on Tuesday night that only three police were monitoring the Chanukah event when the shooting began.

Both alleged gunmen were fired upon by police at the scene. Sajid Akram was shot and killed, while Naveed is in hospital.

Federal police commissioner Krissy Barrett told reporters on Tuesday that the attack was “inspired by Islamic State”.

Islamic State flags were found in a vehicle seized by authorities.

The Australian reported on Tuesday that in November, the father-and-son spent four weeks in Mindanao in the southern Philippines — Southeast Asia’s most notorious militancy hotspot — where they sought terrorist training near Marawi, the city besieged by Islamic State militants in 2017.

Naveed Akram was also a follower of radical Islamist cleric Wisam Haddad, who the Executive Council of Australian Jewry successfully sued for hate speech under the Racial Discrimination Act earlier this year.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – who many believe has not done enough to combat antisemitism in Australia since October 7, 2023 – said Naveed Akram came to the attention of Australia’s intelligence agency in 2019 — but he was not considered an imminent threat at the time.

Sajid Akram was granted a firearms licence two years ago, after his son had been investigated.

The area where the shooting occurred remains cordoned off as police continue their investigations.

NSW Police have set up a community reception centre at the InterContinental Sydney Coogee Beach, to assist loved ones of those affected by the attack, as well as witnesses.

Representatives from Zaka International Search and Rescue, often seen on the ground after terrorist attacks in Israel, have arrived in Sydney to assist with the proper handing of the victims’ remains under Jewish law.

“Within two and a half hours, we are we were on the plane from Israel,” Yossi Landau, a senior Zaka commander, told The AJN at Bondi on Tuesday.

“And we are here to stay here and to make sure that everyone gets a proper burial.

“My heart goes out for the community, for everyone, and especially when children are involved.”

Israel’s Minsiter for Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli also flew to Australia this week in the wake of the tragic incident, telling Sky News he had come to “stand strong with the Jewish community that stood strong with us after October 7”.

“We are here to support them, to hug them and to be with them in their toughest hour,” Chikli said.

He added that he was not surprised the attack occurred, after witnessing demonstrations in the streets with “al Qaeda flags, ISIS flags, Hamas flags, Palestinian flags … people chanting ‘death to the Jews’, ‘from the river to the sea’, ‘globalise the Intifada’.

“I hope that this horrific terror attack will be a Rubicon for the government to take much more decisive actions against jihadist incitement,” he said.

With the area where the massacre occurred closed off, the plaza behind the Bondi Pavilion has become a makeshift memorial site, with members of both the Jewish and wider Australian communities coming to lay flowers, to mounr, to remember, and to show support. It has also seen a steady stream of senior federal, state and local politicians, in addition to sports clubs and other public figures.

Israeli Ambassador Amir Maimon visited the site on Tuesday, where he laid teffilin and recited Shema.

“My heart is torn apart because the Jewish community, Australians … are also my people,” he said. “The People that were brutally murdered here are people that I’ve known, I’ve met.”

Maimon said that during his four-year tenure in Australia, “I was very clear about the danger of the rise in antisemitism in my public statements.

“I shared my concerns about the rise in general and after October the seventh in particular,” he said.

“I would like to convey our heartfelt condolences to the community, to all Australians, and to join the community in their call to the government, take all necessary measures, make sure that the life of every Australian, either a Jew, a Muslim or a Christian, will be safe.”

In the wake of the attack, the J7 Large Communities’ Task Force Against Antisemitism, who met in Australia earlier this month, condemned the massacre and expressed its heartbreak.

“This tragedy is especially painful coming less than a week after J7 leaders convened in Sydney for our first-ever summit in Australia,” the group representing the seven largest Diaspora Jewish communities said.

“During our visit, we stood in solidarity with the local community as they navigated a sharp rise in antisemitic sentiment and incidents since October 7, 2023. We are devastated and outraged to see those tensions escalate into such lethal violence on Australian soil.”

Shortly after the attack on Sunday night, the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) and Community Security Group (CSG) NSW activated the Jewish Community Crisis Response Centre to lead a whole-of-community response and coordinate efforts in the wake of the tragedy. An online hub is accessible via JBD’s website (nswjbd.org.au) where members of the community can access resources and information.

The NSW Government is also announced on Wednesday morning that more mental health resources are being made available.

“We are making free support available to anyone who needs it through our dedicated team of mental health clinicians in Bondi and Coogee, and boosting resources for existing services like headspace, Safe Haven, NSW Health’s Mental Health Line, or Lifeline.” Minister for Mental Health Rose Jackson said.