On a quiet Sunday near Sydney’s Bondi beachfront, a celebration turned into chaos. Sirens wailed, people fled, and gunfire shattered what should have been a moment of community and peace. In the middle of that terror, Ahmed el Ahmed made a choice that likely saved lives.
Crouched behind a car in a nearby parking lot, Mr. el Ahmed found himself just feet away from one of the gunmen responsible for a deadly attack on a Hanukkah gathering. As shots rang out nearby, he didn’t wait for instructions or look for cover. He ran straight toward the danger.
Video footage later verified by The New York Times shows the moment clearly. As the gunman fired in another direction, Mr. el Ahmed sprinted forward and tackled him from behind. The two struggled violently for several seconds before Mr. el Ahmed managed to wrench a long firearm from the attacker’s hands. Holding the weapon, he pointed it toward the assailant, who staggered away before collapsing to the ground.
Australian officials identified Mr. el Ahmed the following day. Almost immediately, the video spread across social media, transforming a fruit seller from Sydney into a symbol of courage amid one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in Australian history.
The mass shooting left the country, and especially Australia’s Jewish community, reeling. In that dark moment, Mr. el Ahmed’s actions offered a rare point of light. Officials said his intervention likely prevented the death toll from being even higher.
“At the best of times, what we see is Australians coming together,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a news conference, referring to the risks Mr. el Ahmed took. The prime minister confirmed that Mr. el Ahmed had been hospitalized with a serious injury, though details of his condition were not immediately released.
Praise for Mr. el Ahmed quickly crossed borders. At the White House, President Donald Trump described him as “a very, very brave person,” according to remarks shared publicly after the footage circulated internationally.
Mr. el Ahmed is an Australian citizen who immigrated from Syria in 2006. According to his parents, he is a fruit seller and the father of two young daughters, ages 3 and 6. On the day of the attack, he had been drinking coffee with a friend near the beach when he heard gunshots.
“He wasn’t thinking about the background of the people he’s saving, the people dying in the street,” his father, Mohamed Fateh el Ahmed, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “He doesn’t discriminate between one nationality and another.”
Chris Minns, the premier of New South Wales, visited Mr. el Ahmed in the hospital and said the man had “saved countless lives.” In a photograph shared by Mr. Minns, Mr. el Ahmed appears alert and engaged, speaking while partially upright in his hospital bed.
Public support followed swiftly. A GoFundMe campaign set up to help Mr. el Ahmed and his family raised more than 1.4 million Australian dollars, about $930,000, within days. According to the fundraising platform, donations included roughly $66,500 from billionaire investor Bill Ackman. GoFundMe said it was working closely with organizers to ensure the funds safely reach Mr. el Ahmed and his family.
At St. George Hospital, where Mr. el Ahmed was being treated, gratitude took a more personal form. Talia Gill and her 10-year-old daughter, Georgie, arrived with gifts and a handwritten letter. Ms. Gill, who is Jewish, said the attack struck close to home, as friends of hers had been in Bondi when the shooting began.
Georgie explained what she wanted to say simply: “Thank you so much for saving all those people you didn’t even know.” After a pause, she added, “You’re probably the kindest person ever.”
In the days following the attack, Ahmed el Ahmed has come to represent something larger than a single act of bravery. An immigrant, a father, and an ordinary citizen, he chose to act when doing nothing would have been safer.
In a moment defined by violence and fear, his instinct was not division or hesitation, but courage.
Watch the full interview here:
Featured Image from Facebook: Ahmed Al Ahmed