In response to mounting criticism, New South Wales (NSW) Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said police “responded promptly” to the terrorist attack on Bondi Beach.
Fifteen victims and one of the shooters have been confirmed dead, while another 42 are injured after two gunmen attacked a Jewish Hanukkah event on the beach.
“I’ve been really clear. Our police responded promptly. Our police respond very promptly,” Lanyon said.
“We work closely with the Jewish community. We are very attuned with providing support to the Jewish community.”
NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley and the premier were at Bondi on the evening of the event. They saw around 50 to 60 police officers on site when they arrived.
“Most of them weren’t on duty. They just heard the event, put their uniform on, got in their car and drove to the Bondi police station. Because they knew they'd be needed,” Catley said.
A child aged 10 is among the victims, along with a Holocaust survivor. Two police officers are in hospital in a stable condition.
The alleged shooters were father and son Sajid Akram, 50 and Naveed Akram, 24. Father Sajid Akram died at the scene and had a category AB firearm licence.
Lanyon confirmed the father had “held a firearms licence since 2015.”
The incident was declared a terrorist attack, with the police commissioner saying it “appeared to be a deliberate shooting towards members of the Jewish community.”
“I want to make sure we do a very thorough and transparent investigation, which is what our police are doing at the moment,” Lanyon said.
Lanyon refused to say if the gunmen were Australian citizens and how long they had been in the country.
“I’m not prepared to comment on that at the moment. That’s all part of the investigation,” he said.
Gun Law Changes Could Be on the Way
Meanwhile, NSW Premier Chris Minns confirmed that gun laws “need to change” and said it requires legislation.“It means introducing a bill to parliament to be really blunt, make it more difficult to get these horrifying weapons that have no practical use in our community.
“If you are not a farmer, if you are not involved in agriculture, why do you need these weapons that puts the public in danger,” he said.
Minns said the government needs to make sure the firearms legislation in NSW is fit for purpose.
“That does mean restricting firearms for the general public, for the people of NSW, but not everybody needs these weapons of mass destruction. You don’t need them on NSW streets,” he said.
He added, “You are going to need to give me time to draft the legislation.”
