Bondi Beach shooting: how it happened
- Written by: Ashlynne McGhee, Head of Editorial Innovation, The Conversation
Two terrorists have killed 15 people at a Chanukah celebration at Bondi Beach. One of the gunmen is also dead. It is now the deadliest mass shooting in Australia since Port Arthur in 1996.
The shooting lasted less than an hour, but the volume of footage and images shared online has made it difficult to track what happened and when.
We’ve sifted through verified online videos, social media posts, broadcast media and police statements to put together these details of how the massacre unfolded.
A timeline of the events
- 5pm – Chanukah by the Sea event begins. It’s run by the Chabad of Bondi which promotes it as “the perfect family event to celebrate light, warmth, and community.”
- Sometime after 6.45pm – Two shooters can be seen firing from a bridge towards people at the Chanukah by the Sea event. They have a number of guns. Video footage shows cars driving past them as they shoot.
- One of the shooters, since identified as Sajid Akram, moves to the park grass.
- A bystander, since identified as Ahmed Al Ahmed, tackles gunman Sajid Akram.
- Sajid Akram runs back to bridge where video shows his son Naveed Akram is still shooting. He re-arms. Both men come under fire from police nearby.
- Sajid Akram is shot and falls to the ground.
- The second alleged gunman, Naveed Akram, is shot. A man in pale clothing walks towards the bridge then motions for police to come. Another man moves onto the bridge and raises his hands, a gunshot can be heard in the video footage.
Police and members of the public run onto the bridge in chaotic scenes. One man can be seen kicking one of the alleged gunmen, while another two people are fighting each other.
By 7.30, police are seen surrounding the shooters on the ground.
- Sajid Akram is confirmed to have died, while Naveed Akram is in hospital with injuries.
Where did the shooting happen?
The father-son gunmen, Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24, started shooting from a small bridge over a carpark next to Archer Park. The terrorist attack took place in the immediate area around the bridge and park. An improvised explosive device was later found in their car[8].
References
Authors: Ashlynne McGhee, Head of Editorial Innovation, The Conversation
Read more https://theconversation.com/bondi-beach-shooting-how-it-happened-272051
