There’s been an outpouring of grief and support from Canadians for the Jewish community in Australia, with many saying they’re “horrified” after two men shot and killed 16 people and injured 40 others at a Jewish holiday celebration at Sydney’s world-famous Bondi Beach on Sunday.
“I was really horrified,” said Bobbi Zahra, a Jewish woman living in Halifax who said she knows members of Sydney’s community. “I thought, ‘It’s Hanukkah. We can’t even have a Hanukkah celebration?’ I mean, Hanukkah itself back in the day was a political thing, it was about keeping off marauders, but Hanukkah today is a celebration of light, it’s a celebration of hope.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney echoed Zahra’s comments about the horror of the incident, and said on X that Canadians stand with Jewish people “everywhere.”
“Canada stands with the people of Australia and Jewish people everywhere in sorrow, and determination never to bow to terrorism, violence, hatred and intimidation,” Carney wrote.
The violence erupted at the end of a hot summer day when thousands had flocked to the beach, including hundreds gathered for the Chanukah by the Sea event celebrating the start of the eight-day Hanukkah festival.
Police said emergency services were called to Bondi about 6:45 p.m. local time, responding to reports of shots being fired. Video filmed by onlookers showed people in bathing suits running from the water as shots rang out. Separate footage showed two men in black shirts with rifles firing from a footbridge leading to the beach as sirens wailed and people cried out in the background.
One dramatic clip broadcast on Australian television showed a man appearing to tackle and disarm one of the gunmen, before pointing the man’s weapon at him, then setting the gun on the ground.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns called the unidentified man a “genuine hero.”
Police say 14 people died at the scene and 42 people, including four children, were taken to Sydney-area hospitals. Police said two of the hospitalized people, a 10-year-old girl and 40-year-old man, have since died in hospital.
One gunman, a 50-year-old, was fatally shot by police and the second, a 24-year-old man, was arrested and in critical condition, authorities said. Police added that one of the gunmen was known to the security services, but there had been no specific threat.
At least 40 people were confirmed injured, including two police officers.
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Officials declared the incident a terrorist attack.
Despite the attack, some are speaking out in defiance, with some rabbis in the Greater Toronto Area saying they plan to proceed with their own Hanukkah celebrations.
“It is chilling to realize that this was meant to be the first public menorah lighting in the world this Chanuka – an attempt to spread fear everywhere, to make Jews think twice about gathering, singing, or shining openly,” said rabbis Avraham E Plotkin and Meir Gitlin of the Tamim Academy of York Region in a statement. “And that is precisely why tonight’s Chanuka Menora lighting and Garden of Lights program and concert matters more than ever. Tonight, we do not give in to terror.”
Levi Gansburg, the rabbi at Chabad on Bayview, said his synagogue will continue to spread light and positivity with its own celebrations this week.
“We are here to stay, we are here to contribute, and a little bit of light dispels much darkness, and we will continue to be that little light that will dispel evil and eradicate hate once and for all from this earth,” Gansburg told Global News.
Chabad, an Orthodox Jewish movement that runs outreach centres around the world and sponsors public events during major Jewish holidays, identified one of the dead as Rabbi Eli Schlanger, assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and a key organizer of the event.
Gansburg confirmed to Global News that the rabbi has ties to Toronto.
Canadian police agencies said on Sunday they are providing more resources to ensure safety.
In a statement posted on X, Toronto police said they were closely monitoring the events in Australia and “any activity that may target Jewish people,” and would continue to protect its communities.
Police Chief Myron Demkiw said in response to world events, the service would increase its presence in public spaces, places of worship and schools and that during the holiday season, residents would see more officers present.
Vancouver police also said they are taking “proactive steps” to ensure the safety of the community during Hanukkah, including additional officers on patrol and present at “key locations and events” within the Jewish community.
Antisemitic attacks have roiled Australia, the home to about 117,000 Jews, according to official figures.
Incidents including assaults, vandalism, threats and intimidation, surged more than three-fold in the country during the year after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent conflict that erupted in the months that followed, according to the government’s Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal.
Last year, synagogues and cars were torched, businesses and homes graffitied and Jews attacked in the cities of Sydney and Melbourne.
Canada is no stranger to such attacks either, with antisemitic incidents spiking across the country after the Oct. 7 attack.
According to Statistics Canada, incidents of hate crimes against the Jewish community jumped to 900 in 2023 from 527 the previous year. In 2024, the number remained high at 816.
It’s why in the wake of the Bondi Beach incident, Jewish organizations in Canada once again called for more action from governments.
“I think condolences for the fallen in Australia and the sympathy for the survivors is very welcome and meaningful, but it does nothing to stop the next attack,” said Noah Shack, CEO for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.
“What we need now is for Canadians to wake up and recognize that the same thing could happen here, for our governments to take urgent action at all levels, to recognize the threat and address it in partnership with law enforcement, to ensure that communities are kept safe and at the same time that we’re addressing some of the root causes that are driving this extremist violence in countries across the Western world.”
—with files from Global News’ Heidi Petracek, Lexy Benedict Jeff Semple and Stewart Bell, and The Associated Press