One of the suspected shooters in a gun attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday has been identified by police, a senior law enforcement official told the public broadcaster Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
Ten people were killed and around a dozen were wounded when gunmen opened fire during a Jewish holiday event at the beach, Australian officials said. New South Wales police said two people had been taken into custody, and the ABC said one of at least two gunmen was among those killed.
According to the law enforcement official, the suspect was identified as Naveed Akram, who lives in the Sydney suburb of Bonnyrigg.
ABC gave no information on his nationality.
“The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mr Akram’s home … was being raided by police on Sunday evening,” ABC reported.
Australian police said an “improvised explosive device” had been found in a car linked to a suspect in the deadly shooting.
“We have found an improvised explosive device in a car which is linked to the deceased offender,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told a news conference.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the incident “shocking and distressing”, adding that “emergency responders are on the ground and working to save lives”.
“I saw at least 10 people on the ground and blood everywhere,” 30-year-old local Harry Wilson, who witnessed the shooting, told the Sydney Morning Herald.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, 43-year-old fruit vendor Ahmed el Ahmed disarmed one of the attackers and wrestled his weapon away from him.
“Ahmed placed himself in the line of fire to take a rifle from the shooter, and was later hit by at least two bullets himself,” the newspaper reported, adding that Ahmed’s cousin told the media that he was shot in his hand and upper arm.
“He’s in hospital and we don’t know exactly what’s going on inside,” the cousin, Mustafa was quoted as saying. “We do hope he will be fine. He’s a hero 100 per cent.”
A screenshot shows Sydney resident Ahmed el Ahmed disarming one of the suspected shooters at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia on December 14. — Screengrab via YouTube/Al Jazeera English
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Jewish people who had gone to light the first candle o
