Amid chaos and bloodshed at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, where two gunmen went on a rampage during celebrations of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah on Sunday, a haunting moment was captured on camera.
A Jewish
man, taking cover as gunfire erupted around him, called his mother in what he feared could be his final moments. His voice trembling, he told her simply, “I love you,” a brief but powerful expression of love and humanity amid the terror unfolding around him.
SHEER TERROR at Bondi Beach massacre
Gunshots ring out overhead as Jewish man tells his mom ‘I love you’ on the phone https://t.co/wT0zIUDiQv pic.twitter.com/IhimGYHXnY
— RT (@RT_com) December 14, 2025
The violence erupted when two alleged gunmen went on a rampage at the beachfront gathering, killing 15 people and turning the celebration into the deadliest incident of gun violence in Australia in nearly 30 years. Police said the suspects were a father and son.
The 50-year-old father was killed at the scene, bringing the death toll to 16, while his 24-year-old son remained in critical condition in hospital, police said at a press conference on Monday, according to Reuters. Authorities described the attack as a targeted antisemitic assault.
Forty people remain hospitalized, including two police officers who are in serious but stable condition. Victims ranged in age from 10 to 87.
Witnesses said the attack lasted about 10 minutes at the crowded beach, sending hundreds of people fleeing across the sand and into nearby streets. Around 1,000 people were attending the Hanukkah event, which was held in a small park near the shoreline.
A bystander who was filmed tackling and disarming one of the attackers has been hailed as a hero. Channel Seven identified him as Ahmed al Ahmed, a 43-year-old fruit shop owner who was shot twice and later underwent surgery. A fundraising page set up in his name had raised more than A$200,000 by Monday morning.
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