When loud, rapid cracks shattered a peaceful December evening, Ahmed Al Ahmed initially mistook the sounds for fireworks. However, the confusion was short-lived as his cousin alerted him to the reality of gunfire, shouting for them to find immediate shelter. “We ended up hiding between two cars,” Al Ahmed recalls, describing the environment as “something like the end of life. I can hear very heavy shooting, nonstop, and people screaming – women, kids, everyone.” The terror left him spiraling: “Everyone started circling in my brain. Because I was thinking I’m going to die.” According to al Ahmed, He wasn’t really thinking. “I just saw myself stand up, quietly, very quickly. I was shouting, ‘Motherfucker, piece of shit. In his new memoir, Light Will Win, Al Ahmed describes an extremely hard childhood. And he writes that even as a young boy he had already rejected the violence and aggression that he’d seen in the men around him, he wanted something different for his life. At 18, Al Ahmed had to begin mandatory military service. His superiors, Al Ahmed writes, were sadists, looking to recruit similarly brutal cadets into the feared Syrian police force. Then drenched with cold water from the powerful hoses used for crowd control, the cadets were forced to lie in the freezing yard in their underwear.
A Scene of Devastation
By the conclusion of the assault, 15 people had been killed, including a 10-year-old girl, while many others were wounded. The attack targeted a Jewish community gathering to celebrate Hanukah at Bondi beach. Authorities confirmed a 16th victim recently succumbed to their injuries in hospital, nearly a year after the event. One of the two gunmen was neutralized by police at the scene. Up to 300,000 people were “disappeared” under the Assad regime, many at the hands of the police.
Amidst the carnage, Al Ahmed observed a figure in black firing a rifle from a footbridge roughly 50 metres away. Desperate, he attempted to recite a passage from the Qur’an to find peace, convinced his life was ending. He looked out and witnessed people lying dead or wounded, stating, “I couldn’t handle people crying and everyone screaming, kids.” And Al Ahmed had to help look after his sheep, getting out of bed at 3am and sometimes sleeping outdoors on cold mountainsides for several days at a stretch, guarding the flock from wolves and thieves, his grandfather was a shepherd.
The Heroic Disarming
A second gunman appeared nearby, unaware of Al Ahmed’s location. Acting on instinct, Al Ahmed charged the man. Video captured by a bystander shows the disarming occurring in under 10 seconds. Reflecting on the moment, Al Ahmed noted, “He was shocked,” adding the assailant acted as if he were “a god, who had been allowed to do whatever he wanted” but had been thwarted. When the man reached into his pockets, presumably for another weapon, Al Ahmed warned, “Leave before I shoot you.” Then he ran at the man. “As soon I reached him from his back, I hit him in his head. And strong, but Al Ahmed found some superhuman strength – some old injuries that had stopped him working for a while vanished in his rush of adrenaline – and he managed to get the man to the ground, while wrestling his gun off him with his left hand, the gunman was a large man. As bullets flew past, he hid behind a palm tree as well as he could. He was working as a labourer, hauling heavy building materials, when he was about 10. But that level of education and training was out of the question, he had wanted to be a doctor. According to the training compound was remote, high up in the mountains. “They humiliate you,”, Al Ahmed. “They don’t let you sleep.
- Fearing the reaction of police as a Middle Eastern man, Al Ahmed dropped the weapon and held up his hands to signal peaceful intent.
- Three bystanders—Boris and Sofia Gurman, and Reuven Morrison—who attempted to intervene were tragically shot and killed during the struggle.
- Al Ahmed later faced legal charges for assaulting his father in June, though these were dropped two months later.
- Naveed Akram, 25, is currently awaiting trial next year in connection with the attack.
- The father of the attacker whom Al Ahmed disarmed, Sajid, was subsequently shot and killed by a police officer.
Al Ahmed, 45, immigrated to Australia in 2006. His upbringing in Syria, where he worked as a labourer and later under harsh conditions in an oil refinery, fueled his desire for a better life. He speaks of the current climate of rising far-right sentiment with concern. “My message is to keep united and to wish peace for everyone,” he says. “We have to stand by each other and put hate to the side.” He remains deeply appreciative of the global support and donations he received, finding comfort in the human capacity to care for one another despite such horrific acts of violence. Al Ahmed, 45, has lived in Australia for 20 years now, and he’s at home in Sydney when we speak. And as a son, he was expected to work to help support the family from a young age, as the eldest of seven. The family had moved again to Aleppo and he was working in an oil factory alongside his studies, by the time he was 16. He refused and was put in solitary confinement as punishment.
As he continues to process the trauma, Al Ahmed reflects on why such evil would target a country he has come to love.
He emphasizes that the experience has left him searching for sense in the senseless, reinforcing his belief that humanity must actively choose unity to counter the destructive nature of hate.
He views his survival and actions not as a mark of singular bravery, but as a testament to the necessity of standing against those who wish to sow discord through fear and murder. The ongoing legal proceedings for the surviving suspect remain a focal point for the community as they look toward a difficult judicial process next year.
The recovery process for the victims’ families and the community at large remains ongoing. Al Ahmed maintains that his story is one of collective resilience, hoping that the tragedy will ultimately serve as a catalyst for greater social cohesion rather than division. He insists that his primary goal is to advocate for peace, urging others to prioritize empathy in a world that can often feel overwhelmed by senseless brutality. His account of that night stands as a harrowing record of the events at Bondi beach, detailing both the cruelty of the attackers and the desperate, split-second decisions made by those caught in the line of fire.
Despite the legal challenges he faced in the aftermath, Al Ahmed says he feels a sense of warmth from the community, reminding him that there are still people committed to looking after one another. He remains in Sydney, attempting to rebuild his life while carrying the memories of the people lost. The 16th victim’s death served as a painful reminder of the lasting impact of the shooting, reinforcing the need for continued support for the survivors and affected families as they navigate their own paths toward healing and seeking justice for their loved ones.
