New South Wales Premier Chris Minns on Sunday praised the man who disarmed a gunman in the deadly attack that killed 15 people at Bondi Beach Australia, calling it “the most unbelievable scene” he’s ever seen.
“A man walking up to a gunman, who had fired on the community, and single-handedly disarming him, putting his own life at risk to save the lives of countless other people — that man is a genuine hero. And I’ve got no doubt that there are many, many people alive tonight as a result of his bravery,” Minns said during a press conference.
The hero has been identified by several news reports as 43-year-old Ahmed al Ahmed, a fruit shop owner.
Ahmed was shown in a clip shared by Guardian walking up behind one of the suspected gunmen, who was shooting a long gun, and then grabbing him around the neck, before wrestling and grabbing the long gun from the gunman. Ahmed then points the gun at the gunman and then raises his hand in the air.
A relative of Ahmed told Australia’s 7News that he was shot twice and is in the hospital.
Australian police said that the gunmen involved in the shootings were a father-son duo, and raided the family home in the Sydney suburb of Bonnyrigg.
The 50-year-old father was fatally shot by police while his 24-year-old son, identified as Naveed Akram, remains in hospital in critical condition.
16 people, including the gunman, have been confirmed dead following the mass shooting at Bondi beach targeting a Jewish Hanukkah festival on the evening of Dec. 14.
Hundreds of people were gathering to celebrate the start of the Jewish Festival of Lights when the attack started.
Deceased victims ranged from 10 to 87 years old, according to Minns.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed one of the deaths was an Israeli citizen.
At least 46 other people, including two police officers, were injured, according to authorities.
Explosive Devices Detected in “Terrorist Attack”
Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon, of the New South Wales Police Force, quickly designated the incident a terrorist attack.
“We know that there were many people there to celebrate a happy occasion—the celebration of Hanukkah. And there was well over 1,000 people there when this took place,” Lanyon said.
“I declared this to be a terrorist incident.”
While Lanyon said it was too early to draw a conclusion about the type of firearms used by the gunmen and their sources, the police commissioner said improvised explosive devices were detected near the shooting scene.
“Shortly after the shooting occurred, police located a vehicle in Campbell parade at Bondi, which we believe has several improvised explosive devices,” he said.
“We have our rescue bomb disposal unit there at the moment working on that.”
When asked about the latest update on the explosive devices, Lanyon said the investigation was still underway.
“At the moment. It’s too early to say that,” he said.
At the same time, Lanyon called on the community to remain calm as police continue their work. “When I asked for calm, that is really important. This is not a time for retribution,” he said.
“This is a time to allow the police to do their duty. So police are responding to make sure that all of the community is safe.”
