Ten people were killed and around a dozen wounded when gunmen opened fire during a Jewish holiday event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday, Australian officials said.
New South Wales police said two people had been taken into custody, and the Australian Broadcasting Corp said one of at least two gunmen was among those killed.
Around a dozen people were taken to local hospitals after the shooting, a New South Wales ambulance spokesperson said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the incident “shocking and distressing”, adding that “emergency responders are on the ground and working to save lives”.
“I saw at least 10 people on the ground and blood everywhere,” 30-year-old local Harry Wilson, who witnessed the shooting, told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Jewish people who had gone to light the first candle of the Hanukkah holiday on the beach had been attacked by “vile terrorists”.
Australia has experienced a string of antisemitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he was appalled by the shooting.
