What happened?
At 6:47pm on Sunday, December 14, police received reports of a shooting at Archer Park in north Bondi.
14 people died at the scene, including one of the shooters, while 42 people – including four children – were taken to hospitals across Sydney.
Police discovered two active improvised explosive devices at the scene. These were taken and rendered safe by police.
More facts
One of the two shooters, a 50 year-old-man, was shot dead at Bondi by police.
The other shooter, his 24-year-old son, suffered critical injuries and was taken to hospital under police guard. Police say he will face criminal charges.
The deceased shooter was a licensed firearms holder since 2015, with six registered weapons, all of which have been recovered.
Police aren’t looking for any other offenders, believing only the two men were involved in the attack.
What’s Evolving
As of 1:30pm Monday, following a press conference held by NSW Police, Premier Chris Minns confirmed:
16 people including the shooter have died and 38 people have been injured including two police officers.
The victims are as young as 10 and as old as 87.
Five people remain in critical conditions with the others remaining in serious and stable conditions.
Both police officers remain in serious but stable conditions
Investigations are ongoing:
Police have not said why the attack was carried out or provided any details on motives.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at an earlier press conference on Monday the attack was “deliberately targeted at the Jewish community on the first day of Chanukah, which of course should be a joyous celebration. The Jewish community is hurting today.”
Police did not say if the attackers were inspired by any ideology.
Police have not confirmed the existence of any manifestos, notes, or online postings linked to the perpetrators.
What you can do
Donate blood.
Lifeblood has issued urgent calls for O negative blood across NSW.
Fewer than 7% of Australians have this blood type, and it’s critical in emergencies when a patient’s blood type is unknown.
Show kindness.
In Monday morning’s press conference, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon and NSW Premier Chris Minns called for calm, urging the public to embrace the Jewish community.
“It’s our responsibility to wrap our arms around that wounded community and let them know that ordinary Australians, regular Australians, are in their corner and thinking of them this morning after this terrible, terrible, targeted attack.” - NSW Premier Chris Minns
Keeping calm
On Monday afternoon, Premier Minns said there will be no tolerance for any retaliation toward any group of people, and those doing so will be “met with the full force of the law.”
“We are not going to allow ever a situation where we descend into some kind of lawlessness, and if you are considering participating in something like that, you can expect a massive, overwhelming police response.”
“We need to appeal for calm. We need to be in a situation where we're saying to the people of New South Wales, this is a horrible event. You have to allow the communities in New South Wales to heal.”
Reform
Chris Minns has promised to review gun ownership laws in the state.
“Making it more difficult to get these horrifying weapons that have no practical use in our community if you're not a farmer, if you're not involved in agriculture, why do you need these massive weapons that put the public in danger and make life dangerous,” the NSW Premier said.