Watch: How Sydney's fruit seller, Ahmed al Ahmed, disarmed and tackled shooter at Bondi Beach

 

A striking video from Australia’s Bondi Beach has surfaced showing a civilian stepping in to overpower one of the gunmen during a mass shooting, an intervention that authorities believe may have limited further casualties. The footage captures the moment the man lunges at the attacker, wrests a rifle from his hands and attempts to turn the weapon on him as gunshots echo and crowds flee.

The clip unfolds amid chaos, with people running in all directions. A separate video from the same incident shows a second shooter standing on a suspended pedestrian walkway, appearing to fire at people below as beachgoers scatter across the sand and nearby streets.

The bystander has since been identified as 43-year-old Ahmed al Ahmed, a Sydney resident who owns a fruit shop in Sutherland. According to News.com.au, Ahmed, a father of two, was shot twice while intervening during the attack.

His cousin, Mustafa, told 7News that Ahmed was hospitalised and scheduled to undergo surgery on Sunday night. “He’s in hospital, and we don’t know exactly what’s going on inside. We do hope he will be fine. He’s a hero 100 per cent,” Mustafa said.

‘He just stepped in.’

Reports said Ahmed had no firearms training and happened to be walking past the area when the shooting began. Video footage shows him wearing a white shirt and crouching behind a car in a nearby car park, just metres from one of the shooters. During a brief lull in gunfire, Ahmed ran between parked vehicles and grabbed the attacker from behind, placing him in a headlock.

After a struggle lasting about five seconds, Ahmed managed to wrest the shotgun from the gunman, causing him to fall backwards. The footage shows Ahmed then pointing the weapon at the attacker, who retreated towards a nearby bridge, repeatedly glancing over his shoulder.

Hanukkah celebration turns deadly

The shooting took place on Sunday evening during a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach. Gunshots rang out across the waterfront as people attending the Jewish festival ran for cover. The event, titled Chanukah By The Sea, had invited families to gather near the children’s playground at Bondi Beach Park at 5 pm.

The area was already crowded due to the Bondi Christmas markets, adding to the number of people present when the attack unfolded.

Witnesses told the Daily Mail that two men exited a vehicle on Campbell Parade near the Bondi Pavilion and began firing at around 6.40 pm. Footage from the scene showed two individuals dressed in black shooting near the beach, with one positioned on a bridge overlooking the area.

At least 16 people, including one of the gunmen, were killed in what authorities believe was a targeted attack on a Jewish event. A total of 29 people were hospitalised, while police said around 40 people were injured, including two police officers.s