Australia's Tragic Bondi Shooting: A Community in Mourning and Outcry

Mon Dec 15 2025 18:07:59 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

In a chilling attack during the Hanukkah celebrations, the Jewish community in Bondi Beach suffers a devastating loss as antisemitism grows in Australia. Citizens and leaders respond with grief and calls for action to combat hate.

The horrific shooting in Bondi Beach, where gunmen targeted a Jewish festival, has left the community in shock and mourning, reflecting rising antisemitism in Australia. Eyewitnesses describe a scene of panic as families fled, leaving behind their belongings. Leaders and community members express that this tragedy, while shocking, felt inevitable amidst the increasing hate incidents, sparking urgent calls for reform and greater protection of minority communities.

Bondi Beach is almost unrecognisable. The sun is out but the surf is empty. The usually heaving main street is hushed.

Helicopters track overhead. Forensic investigators - bright blue figures in the distance - comb over the crime scene from Sunday afternoon when two gunmen opened fire at an event marking the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, killing at least 15 people and injuring more than 40 others.

Beach chairs, crumpled towels, wads of clothing, a pair of children's sandals lie in a neat pile at the edge of the sand - all the things people left behind as they fled what police are calling Australia’s deadliest terror attack.

Nearby, a wall of floral tributes has begun to grow over the footpath. Milling around are shocked locals. Hands cover trembling lips. Sunglasses do their best to hide puffy eyes.

I've grown up in fear my whole life, 22-year-old Jess tells the BBC. As a Jew, this felt inevitable, she adds.

That is the overriding sentiment here today – this is shocking for such a safe country and yet predictable for one that has been grappling with rising antisemitism.

More than 24 hours on, the Jewish community is still locating the missing and counting the dead. Among them is a prominent local Rabbi, Eli Schlanger, who only a month ago had welcomed his fifth child.

His brother-in-law Rabbi Mendel Kastel said, The family broke. They are falling apart.

The youngest victim is a 10-year-old named Matilda, whose only crime was being Jewish, says Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.

As the Bondi community reeled, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faced questions on why this attack wasn't prevented. Despite a recent uptick in antisemitism-related incidents, concerns raised by community leaders were not adequately addressed.

Community response includes an outpouring of support, with locals lining up for hours to donate blood. As one Australian proclaimed, Australia has your back. The tragedy at Bondi Beach is not just a local incident but a call to action for all Australians to unite against hate and ensure the safety of every citizen.