Australians in Montreal shaken by Bondi mass shooting

Family members of a victim from Sunday's shooting mourn at a flower memorial made after the shooting at the Bondi Pavilion at Bondi Beach on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, in Sydney, Australia. (AP Photo/Mark Baker) (Mark Baker/AP)

Isabella Robinson, an Australian Montrealer who grew up on Sydney’s Bondi Beach, said she was horrified by news of the mass shooting that left 15 people dead during a Hanukkah celebration.

“I still get emotional thinking about it,” Robinson said in a recent interview. “Seeing it happen from a distance, I feel completely helpless.”

She said the attack was particularly shocking given Australia’s strict gun laws and the country’s lack of a gun-violence culture.

Robinson, whose parents still live in Bondi, said it is the one place she continues to consider home, describing it as a peaceful and multicultural community.

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“To me, it truly doesn’t represent the Bondi I know and love,” she said.

On Tuesday, Australian federal police described the shooting as a “terrorist attack inspired by the Islamic State group.”

Authorities said the suspects were a father and son, aged 50 and 24. The older man, identified as Sajid Akram of Hyderabad, India, was fatally shot by police. His son, Naveed, remains in custody and is being treated in hospital.

Robinson said she has spoken with her parents and friends in Bondi since the attack, and noted the impact goes beyond the tragedy.

“The devastation is twofold,” she said. “Not only because of what happened, but because of what comes next.”

She said she has already seen Islamophobic rhetoric circulating online, including calls for violence against Muslim communities.

“And seeing some of the worst actors in our society leveraging this moment as a chance to divide us,” Robinson added.

Authorities said 25 people remain hospitalized following Sunday’s attack, including 10 in critical condition. Three are being treated at a children’s hospital.

Among the victims was Ahmed al Ahmed, who was captured on video tackling and disarming one of the assailants and then pointing the man’s weapon at him before setting it on the ground.

‘Dreadful act of hate’

Robinson is not the only Australian living in Montreal grappling with the impact of the attack.

Estelle Pigot, who is originally from Sydney and lived and worked in Bondi Beach in her 20s, said the massacre has deeply affected her and her family.

“I personally attach very strongly to Bondi, which of course makes this tragedy even more shattering, apart from the fact that it’s just a heartbreaking, dreadful act of hate, antisemitism and terrorism against the Jewish community and against Australia as a whole,” she said.

Pigot, whose mother and stepfather are Jewish, said many in the community have been left unsettled, with their sense of security shaken.

“We are lighting the Hanukkah candles this season,” Pigot said. “I think it’s been important to my family to honour that part of our heritage. In the days since we heard about this tragedy, it’s been a way to try and find healing.”

Both women also pointed to moments of courage shown by ordinary people during the attack, including Ahmed al Ahmed.

“That love and that unity is what I hope people hold on to most,” Robinson said. “That’s what Bondi — and Australia and Canada — should be about.”

With files from the Canadian Press