Australia holds day of mourning for Bondi Beach shooting victims
Australians will fall quiet in candlelight Thursday on a national day of mourning for the 15 people killed by gunmen who opened fire at a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach.
As flags fly at half mast, millions are being asked to observe a minute's silence at 7:01 pm east coast time (0801 GMT) for victims of the December 14 mass shooting, Australia's deadliest in three decades.
Candles will be lit in windows and on doorsteps around the country.
Survivors, families and emergency responders are to join with political and community leaders in an evening of mourning at Sydney Opera House, with the theme "Light Will Win".
Sajid Akram and his son Naveed allegedly shot into crowds at a Jewish Hanukkah celebration on the famous Sydney beach, inspired by Islamic State ideology.
"When we look to Bondi, we don't just see a beach," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
"We see it as part of our promise to the world. It's a welcoming embrace, a famous crescent of sand and water where there's room for everyone," he told reporters.
"This is a place where nothing should break except for the waves. But a lot broke that night."
- Antisemitism -
Among the victims were an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, a couple who confronted one of the gunmen, and a 10-year-old girl, Matilda, described at her funeral as a "ray of sunshine".
Despite the dangers of that day, first responders raced to treat the wounded; strangers sheltered each other from gunfire and shop owner Ahmed al Ahmed famously wrested a gun from one of the attackers.
Albanese, who is to address the Opera House event, has faced criticism for alleged foot-dragging in combating antisemitism ahead of the attack.
Since the shooting, he has agreed to establish a high-level royal commission inquiry, which is to include examinations of the security services' actions, and rising reports of antisemitism.
This week, his left-leaning Labor government ushered through parliament new laws that seek to tighten gun control and crack down on crimes of hate speech and radicalisation.
On hate speech and radicalisation, the legislation stiffens sentences, sets up a framework for listing prohibited hate groups and makes it easier to reject or cancel visas for suspects.
- Security questions -
On firearms, Australia will set up a national gun buyback scheme, tighten rules on imports of the weapons and expand background checks for gun permits to allow input from the intelligence services.
"What we need is more kindness in the world, less conflict in the world, not just here, but right around the globe," Albanese said.
"In a time of turbulence, I really want this nation to be a light for the world."
Gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was shot and killed by police during the Bondi Beach attack. An Indian national, he entered Australia on a visa in 1998.
His 24-year-old son Naveed, an Australian-born citizen who remains in prison, has been charged with terrorism and 15 murders.
Police and intelligence agencies face difficult questions about whether they could have acted earlier to prevent the shooting.
Naveed Akram was flagged by Australia's intelligence agency in 2019, but he slipped off the radar after it was decided that he posed no imminent threat.
The Akram duo travelled to the southern Philippines in the weeks before the shooting, fuelling suspicions they may be linked to Islamist extremists.
But Australian police say the evidence so far suggests they acted alone.
(S.A.Dudajev--DTZ)
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