SYDNEY: An attack by a father and son on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration at Sydney´s Bondi Beach killed 15 people, plunging Australia into a day of mourning Monday.

Here’s what we know:

Gunfire at Bondi

Emergency services responded to reports of shots fired at 6:47pm (0747 GMT) Sunday at Bondi Beach, one of the biggest tourist draws in Australia’s largest city.

The shooting took place during an annual event to celebrate Hanukkah, which police said was attended by around 1,000 people.

Casualties

Police say the attackers fired into the crowds, killing 15 people aged from 10 to 87.

The youngest victim, a 10-year-old girl, died later in a children’s hospital, whereas 42 people were hospitalised overnight, including five in a critical condition.

Among them are two police officers wounded in a shootout with the gunmen.

Attackers

Police say one of the assailants was a 50-year-old father who was shot and killed in a shootout with officers.

The other was his 24-year-old son, who is in a critical condition in hospital, under police guard.

Australian media named them as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram.

In a statement, police said the pair used “long arms to fire into crowds of people”.

The father was licensed to hold six guns, all of which police believe were used in the shooting.

Police do not believe others were involved.

Terrorism

The attack was declared a terrorist incident at 9:36pm (1036 GMT) by New South Wales Premier Chris Minns.

As a result, federal and police launched a joint counter-terrorism operation.

Global condemnations

The attack sparked condemnation worldwide, led by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese who described it as an act of “pure evil”.

US President Donald Trump said it was a “purely antisemitic attack”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Australia’s government of “pouring oil on the fire of antisemitism” by not acting strongly enough before the shooting.

Syria has arrested five people suspected of having links to the shooting of US and Syrian troops in the central Syrian town of Palmyra on Saturday, the Interior Ministry said on Sunday.

Two US Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed by an attacker who targeted a convoy of American and Syrian forces before being shot dead. The Syrian Interior Ministry has described the attacker as a member of the Syrian security forces suspected of sympathising with Daesh.

Syria has been cooperating with a US-led coalition against Daesh, reaching an agreement last month when President Ahmed al-Sharaa visited the White House.

Syria’s Interior Ministry said its units in Palmyra carried out an operation in coordination with “international coalition forces” that resulted in the arrest of five suspects “who were immediately referred for questioning”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the attack by phone with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani on Sunday. Shibani “offered condolences and reiterated the commitment of the Syrian government to degrade and destroy the shared threat of Daesh,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said.

Syria’s Interior Ministry said it had assessed the assailant just days before the attack, and concluded he might have extremist views. A decision about his future had been pending.

The US-led coalition has carried out air strikes and ground operations in Syria targeting Daesh suspects in recent months, often with the involvement of Syria’s security forces. Syria last month also carried out a nationwide campaign, arresting more than 70 people accused of links to the group.

The United States has troops stationed in northeastern Syria as part of a decade-long effort to fight Daesh, which held swathes of Syria and Iraq from 2014-2019.

Syria’s government is now led by former rebels who toppled leader Bashar al-Assad last year after a 13-year civil war, including members of Syria’s former Al Qaeda branch who broke with the group and clashed with Daesh.

• Berlin, New York, Warsaw, London enhance police presence.
• Berlin’s menorah lighting includes prayer for Sydney victims.
• France boosts security around Jewish sites during Hanukkah.

Major cities, including Berlin, London and New York, stepped up security around Hanukkah events on Sunday following the attack on a Jewish holiday celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

Berlin police said they were ramping up measures around the German capital’s Brandenburg Gate, where a large electric menorah is being lit to mark the first night of Hanukkah.

“We have long planned comprehensive security for tonight’s Hanukkah event at the Brandenburg Gate – in light of the events in Sydney, we will further intensify our measures and maintain a strong police presence there,” a spokesperson said on X.

Meanwhile, New York Mayor Eric Adams said on X that extra protection was being deployed for Hanukkah celebrations and synagogues in New York City.

“We will continue to ensure the Jewish community can celebrate the holiday in safety — including at public Menorah lightings across the city. Let us pray for the injured and stand together against hatred,” Adams said.

In Warsaw’s main synagogue, armed security was doubled for its Sunday evening event.

Polish police also said they had decided to ramp up security.

“Due to the geopolitical situation and the attack in Sydney, we are strengthening preventive measures around diplomatic missions and places of worship,” a press officer for Poland’s National Police Headquarters told Reuters in a text message.

The officer specified this meant “intensified preventive measures in the area of ​​diplomatic and consular missions, religious sites and other institutions related to Israel and Palestine.”

The event at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate will also include a prayer for the victims of Sydney’s Bondi Beach shooting, which left several people dead in what Australian officials described as a targeted antisemitic attack.

Germany has long followed a policy of special responsibility for Jews and for Israel, known as the Staatsraeson, due to the legacy of the Nazi Holocaust.

Security measures at synagogues and other Jewish institutions are the norm in Berlin, but a police spokesperson said these would be ramped up for the Hanukkah period.

London’s Metropolitan Police said it had also increased security, but did not want to give details.

“While there is no information to suggest any link between the attack in Sydney and the threat level in London, this morning we are stepping up our police presence, carrying out additional community patrols and engaging with the Jewish community to understand what more we can do in the coming hours and days,” it said in a statement.

France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunez asked local authorities to reinforce security around Jewish places of worship during the December 14 to 22 period, a spokesperson for the minister said.

Nunez called for increased deployment of security forces, with particular vigilance around religious services and gatherings that draw large crowds, especially when they take place in public spaces, the spokesperson added.