هجوم إرهابي أسترالي في سيدني خلال عيد الأنوار (حانوكا) يسفر عن مقتل 11 شخصاً

أدان وزير الخارجية الأمريكي ماركو روبيو الهجوم، مصرحًا: “لا مكان لمعاداة السامية في هذا العالم”. بين السطور: يُعد هذا الهجوم الأكثر دموية في البلاد منذ مذبحة بورت آرثر عام ١٩٩٦ التي دفعت إلى سنّ قوانين صارمة للسيطرة على الأسلحة.
ومنذ ذلك الحين، أصبحت حوادث إطلاق النار الجماعي نادرة للغاية في أستراليا. ووفقًا لمؤتمر المطالبات المادية اليهودية ضد ألمانيا، فإن أستراليا تضم ​​أعلى نسبة من الناجين من المحرقة النازية للفرد الواحد خارج إسرائيل.

Two gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration at Australia’s iconic Bondi Beach on Sunday, killing at least 11 people in what officials have declared a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community.The big picture: The assault marks Australia’s deadliest shooting in nearly three decades and comes amid rising antisemitic violence that has alarmed Jewish communities worldwide.The latest: The attack began around 6:45pm local time as about 1,000 people gathered at a “Chanukah by the Sea” event organized by the Chabad of Bondi, according to news reports.

• One man believed to be a shooter was killed by police, while another suspect was hospitalized in critical condition, according to a police statement.
• Police reported at least 29 people were transported to the hospital, including two police officers.
• Video footage published by The New York Times showed two gunmen in black shirts firing from a bridge.
• One bystander tackled a gunman and wrestled away his weapon in footage verified by news organizations, an act New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said made the man a “genuine hero” who saved “the lives of countless other people.”
• Among those killed was Rabbi Eli Schlanger, a British-born assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and an organizer of the event, according to Chabad’s website.

What they’re saying: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called it a “targeted attack on Jewish Australians on the first day of Hanukkah, which should be a day of joy.”

• U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the attack, stating “antisemitism has no place in this world.”

Between the lines: This is the deadliest attack in the country since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre prompted strict gun control laws. Since then, mass shootings have become exceptionally rare in Australia.

• According to the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, Australia has the highest number of Holocaust survivors per capita outside Israel.