PODCAST:
Dec. 15, 2025 ~ Prominent Israel advocate and reporter Doron Levin joins Chris Renwick and Jamie Edmonds to discuss 15 people killed in a shooting at Australia‘s Bondi Beach on the first day of Hannukkah.
SYDNEY ~ A mass shooting unfolded Sunday, Dec.14, near Bondi Beach, targeting a Hanukkah celebration and leaving at least 16 people dead, including one of the gunmen, and about 27 injured, officials confirmed.
The shooting suspects are a father and son duo, with the father fatally shot by police at the scene, and the son remaining in custody and hospitalized for critical injuries. Another individual being treated for injuries is Ahmed al Ahmed, a son of Syrian refugees who was filmed tackling one of the armed suspects, seizing his weapon in a scene being hailed as “heroic.”
The incident was declared a terrorist act aimed at the city’s Jewish community during “Chanukah by the Sea,” a public holiday event drawing hundreds of families and observers. Witnesses reported hearing about 40–50 rounds of gunfire erupt from a bridge overlooking the gathering. Civilian video footage captured a dramatic scene of panic and chaos as attendees fled for cover.
New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon confirmed that two men, a 50-year-old father and his 24-year-old son, are the suspects.
Authorities discovered explosive devices in a vehicle linked to the deceased perpetrator. Among the deceased is Rabbi Eli Schlanger, the assistant rabbi of Chabad of Bondi and one of the event’s organizers. Additionally, two responding police officers and children were injured amid the crossfire.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the shooting as “an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism that has struck the heart of our nation,” stating that Hanukkah, meant to be a celebration of light and hope, was marred by tragedy. He added, though, that suspects are not believed to be a part of a wider terror cell.
