Bondi Beach attack: Prime Minister Albanese apologizes to Jewish community as details of the attack emerge
Police revealed that the attack, allegedly inspired by Islamic State ideology, was planned for months as the government faces questions.
Wreath laying at Bondi Beach
Australia continues to mourn the mass shooting at Bondi Beach. Following a national day of reflection in honor of the 15 killed in the attack, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese apologized to the Jewish community in Australia for the attack that occurred during a Hanukkah event.
"As Prime Minister, I feel the weight of responsibility for an atrocity that happened while I'm Prime Minister," the 62-year-old said Monday. "I'm sorry for what the Jewish community and our nation as a whole has experienced."
He also promised that his government would "work every day" to protect Australian Jews: "To protect the fundamental right as Australians that they have to be proud of who they are, to practice their faith, to educate their children and to engage in Australian society in the fullest way possible". He also announced a series of measures including reforms to gun ownership and hate speech laws.
Albanese was booed on Sunday, during the memorial for the victims at Bondi Beach itself. The Australian Labor Party leader has been criticized for not doing enough to combat anti-Semitism, or even promoting it with policies such as recognizing a Palestinian state.
The Israeli prime minister himself, Benjamin Netanyahu, gave voice to these criticisms, assuring after the deadly shooting that in August he had delivered a letter to his Australian counterpart warning him that his policies encouraged terrorism. But, Netanyahu assured, Albanese "did nothing."
New details: an attack planned "meticulously"
On Monday, new information about the attack was also revealed by the local police.
According to the documents, the accused, Naveed Akram and his father Sajid Akram, "meticulously planned" the attack for months. In images revealed by the police, they are seen firing shotguns and moving in a "tactical manner."
A video was also found on the phone of one in which they are seen repudiating the "Zionists" in front of a flag of the Islamic State terrorist group, while reciting a passage from the Koran and detailing their motivations for the attack, according to AFP.
One of the attackers, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, was shot dead by police during the attack. The Indian national entered Australia on a visa in 1998.
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His son Naveed, 24, an Australian national, survived and remained hospitalized with gunshot wounds until Monday, when police transferred him to jail. He faces multiple charges, including one for terrorism and 15 for murder.
Court documents also reveal that the Akram's put Islamic State flags on the front and rear windshields of the car they parked near the beach shortly before the attack.
They got out of the vehicle with three firearms, three pipe bombs and a tennis ball bomb, according to local media outlet ABC. Although they allegedly threw all four explosive devices, none detonated.
Bondi Beach hero
"In a moment of chaos and danger, Ahmed al Ahmed stepped forward without hesitation. His actions were selfless, instinctive, and undeniably heroic, taken without regard for his own safety. Early reports indicate he was shot twice in the process while protecting others," says the donation campaign.
A 43-year-old father of two girls, Ahmed heard the gunshots while having coffee with a friend. Despite being unarmed, he ran towards one of the shooters during the massacre, managing to disarm him. During the struggle, he was shot several times and had to be hospitalized.
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