Camille Naredo

The Sydney Opera House is illuminated with candle lights in Sydney on December 21, 2025, as part of a national day of reflection honoring the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. George Chan, AFP

The Sydney Opera House is illuminated with candlelights in Sydney on December 21, 2025, as part of a national day of reflection honouring the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. Australians fell silent in flickering candlelight to honour the Bondi Beach shooting victims, marking one week since gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival. (Photo by GEORGE CHAN / AFP)

Article (news)

Sydney Opera House

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1766316061375AFP__20251221__88RF9KT__v1__HighRes__AustraliaAttackBondi.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="The Sydney Opera House is illuminated with candle lights in Sydney on December 21, 2025, as part of a national day of reflection honoring the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. George Chan, AFP" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">The Sydney Opera House is illuminated with candle lights in Sydney on December 21, 2025, as part of a national day of reflection honoring the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. <em>George Chan, AFP</em></span></span></span></div><p>SYDNEY, Australia -- Australians fell silent in flickering candlelight on Sunday to honor the Bondi Beach shooting victims, marking one week since gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival.</p><p>A father and son are accused of targeting the beachside Hanukkah celebration, killing 15 people in the nation&#x27;s deadliest mass shooting in almost three decades.</p><p>From raucous city pubs to sleepy country towns, Australia observed a minute&#x27;s silence at 6:47 pm (0747 GMT) -- exactly a week since the first reports of gunfire.</p><p>Countless homes lined their windowsills with candles in a gesture of &quot;light over darkness&quot;, a key theme of the Hanukkah festival.</p><p>&quot;Let&#x27;s make peace together,&quot; Roslyn Fishall, a member of Sydney&#x27;s Jewish community, told AFP from a makeshift memorial at a cloud-covered Bondi Beach.</p><p>Summer winds buffeted flags lowered to half-mast across the country, including over the famed Sydney Harbour Bridge.</p><p>A candle was lit before thousands of people held their silent vigil at Bondi Beach.</p><p>Anger spilled over at the government&#x27;s perceived failure to act swiftly and forcefully enough after a rise in antisemitic incidents.</p><p>Some booed when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese&#x27;s presence was announced.</p><p>Albanese, wearing a traditional Jewish kippah, did not speak at the event.</p><p>David Ossip, president of the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies, said that &quot;last week took our innocence and, like the grass here at Bondi was stained with blood, so too has our nation been stained.&quot;</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/12/16/timeline-how-the-bondi-beach-mass-shooting-unfolded-1658">Timeline: How the Bondi Beach mass shooting unfolded</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- &#x27;Unspeakable&#x27; loss -</strong></div><p>The shooting would have been a tragedy if unexpected, Ossip said.</p><p>&quot;How much more tragic is it that the loss of life occurred despite all the warning signs being there?&quot;</p><p>As dusk fell over the Bondi foreshore, event organizers estimated some 20,000 had turned out for the event.</p><p>&quot;Bondi is with us, Sydney is with us, Australia is with us and the world is with us,&quot; rabbi Yehoram Ulman said, before reading out the names of the 15 victims.</p><p>They include 10-year-old Matilda, the youngest victim, and Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman, 87, who was killed shielding his wife from bullets.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/16/10-year-old-girl-holocaust-survivors-among-bondi-beach-dead-1349">READ: 10-year-old girl, Holocaust survivors among Bondi Beach dead</a></div><p>Paramedics, police and parents of the wounded were invited on stage to light the arms of a Jewish candelabrum known as a menorah.</p><p>A generation of Australians has grown up with the notion that mass shootings simply do not happen in the country.</p><p>That illusion was shattered when alleged gunmen Sajid Akram, 50, and his 24-year-old son Naveed trained their long-barreled weapons on the nation&#x27;s most famous beach.</p><p>The attack was so unthinkable that many shrugged off the first cracks of gunfire as harmless festive fireworks.</p><p>A deep sense of sorrow has settled over Australia in the past seven days.</p><p>&quot;The loss is unspeakable,&quot; said rabbi Levi Wolff.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>- &#x27;Guns off our streets&#x27; -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ud-tlTULft8?autoplay=1&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>The alleged attackers drew inspiration from the jihadist Islamic State group, authorities said as they branded the shooting an antisemitic act of terrorism.</p><div><a class="fr-strong fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/16/australia-pm-says-islamic-state-ideology-drove-bondi-beach-shooters-0949">READ: Australia PM says &#x27;Islamic State ideology&#x27; drove Bondi Beach shooters</a></div><p>Already, it threatens to fray the bonds of social cohesion in a multicultural nation.</p><p>Pig heads have been dumped on Muslim graves, and right-wing groups have organized a fresh wave of anti-immigration rallies.</p><p>Jewish community leaders have accused the government of ignoring a rising tide of antisemitism.</p><p>&quot;Do we feel safe? You know, the answer is &#x27;not really&#x27;,&quot; rabbi Yossi Friedman told AFP at a floral memorial for the victims.</p><p>Grieving families are demanding to know how the gunmen slipped through the cracks.</p><p>Unemployed bricklayer Naveed was flagged by Australia&#x27;s intelligence agency in 2019 but he fell off the radar after authorities deemed he posed no imminent threat.</p><p>The government has announced a suite of national measures on gun ownership and hate speech, promising stricter laws and harsher penalties.</p><p>Albanese has announced a sweeping buyback scheme to &quot;get guns off our streets&quot;.</p><p>It is the largest gun buyback since 1996, when Australia cracked down on firearms in the wake of a mass shooting that killed 35 people at Port Arthur.</p><p>Albanese has also ordered a review of police and intelligence services.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/12/19/bondi-beach-gunmen-did-not-leave-davao-city-had-no-visitors-a-o-says-2337">READ: Bondi Beach gunmen did not leave Davao City, had no visitors, Año says</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/20/bondi-shooter-visited-gun-shop-during-philippines-stay-police-1448">READ: Bondi shooter visited gun shop during Philippines stay — police</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- Bravery -</strong></div><p>Alongside the killings, stories of immense bravery have emerged.</p><p>Unarmed beachgoers grappled with the heavily armed assailants, while others shielded total strangers or dashed through gunfire to treat the wounded.</p><p>Shopkeeper Ahmed al Ahmed, a father of two who moved to Australia from Syria almost a decade ago, has been lauded after ducking between cars and then wresting a gun from one of the attackers.</p><p>Sajid Akram, an Indian national who entered Australia on a visa in 1998, was shot and killed by police.</p><p>Naveed, an Australian-born citizen, remains in hospital under police guard and faces multiple charges, including terrorism and 15 murders.</p>

<p>Australians fell silent in flickering candlelight on Sunday to honor the Bondi Beach shooting victims, marking one week since gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival.</p>

Australians fell silent in flickering candlelight on Sunday to honor the Bondi Beach shooting victims, marking one week since gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival.

Australia falls silent, lights candles for Bondi Beach shooting victims

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

World

Australia falls silent, lights candles for Bondi Beach shooting victims

Steven Trask and Joshua Khoury,

Agence France-Presse

Published Dec 21, 2025 07:38 PM PHT

|

Updated Dec 21, 2025 09:58 PM PHT

Read More:

Australia

Sydney

Bondi Beach

antisemitism

mass shooting

Hanukkah

Islamic State

terrorism

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.