Hundreds of people gathered at a Sydney beach to celebrate the start of Hanukkah, a Jewish festival observed this week, were caught in a shooting that left at least 12 dead and 29 injured.
In a brief statement, Gabriel Senderowicz, the president of the Jewish community, remarked that “this is the result of many understandings of the massacre of October 7, 2023, and many ‘recognitions of the state of Hamas’, including embassies where the terrorist movement’s laws prevail.”
The attack at Bondi Beach, Australia, has been condemned by leaders worldwide.
King Charles III, the head of state of Australia, described the event as “a terrible antisemitic terrorist attack against Jews.”
Additionally, the Portuguese government criticized the incident as “a heinous act of antisemitism.”
Two attackers opened fire on a crowd celebrating Hanukkah at Bondi Beach, Sydney, in what the Australian police referred to as a “terrorist act” against the Jewish community.
Various media report that at least 12 people were killed, including one of the two attackers, and about thirty injured were taken to nearby hospitals.
Mass shootings are extremely rare in Australia. A massacre in Port Arthur, Tasmania, in 1996, where a lone gunman killed 35 people, prompted the government to drastically tighten gun laws, making it much harder for Australians to acquire firearms.
