Numerous fatalities in Bondi Beach shooting (VIDEOS)

At least 16 people were killed and dozens more injured after two gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration on a beach in Sydney, Australia, authorities said.

The attack took place on Sunday evening at the city’s iconic Bondi Beach. Video footage posted online showed two individuals shooting toward large crowds, sending hundreds of people fleeing in panic as emergency services rushed to the scene.

Police later confirmed that 16 people had died and 29 others were injured, including two police officers. At a news conference following the shooting, authorities said the incident is being treated as a terrorist attack, adding that explosives were discovered in a vehicle linked to one of the gunmen.

In an earlier post on X, police said a man believed to be one of the attackers was among those killed. The second gunman was apprehended and remains in critical condition.

Early on Monday, New South Wales Health Minister Ryan Park confirmed the death toll at 16, telling broadcaster ABC that one of the victims was a child. It was not immediately clear whether the figure included the gunman shot dead by police at the scene.

The shooting has shocked the local community, as it occurred during the first night of Hanukkah – a major Jewish holiday that commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and is traditionally marked by public celebrations, family gatherings, and the lighting of candles over eight nights.

Videos filmed by locals and posted online reportedly captured the moment the shooters were apprehended by police.

Other footage showed crowds fleeing the beach. One clip that quickly went viral appeared to show a bystander attacking one of the gunmen and disarming him, apparently before police arrived.

Australian Prime minister Anthony Albanese called scenes in Bondi “shocking and distressing.” “Police and emergency responders are on the ground working to save lives. My thoughts are with every person affected,” he wrote in a statement on X.

Independent MP Allegra Spender, whose electorate includes Bondi Beach, called the incident “horrifying.”

“It’s still not clear exactly what has happened… This is not the Australia that we know and love. I know our community will come together, but this is devastating to all of us,” she said.

While it remains unclear whether the shooters deliberately targeted the Jewish celebration, Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told 2GB radio it was no coincidence the shooting occurred during a Jewish community event.

“Hundreds of people were gathered. It’s a family event… I don’t think this was an attack that just happened to occur at Bondi Beach. I think this was very deliberate and very targeted,” Ryvchin said. He added that the ECAJ’s director of media was injured in the incident.