A young girl and Holocaust survivors were among 15 people shot and killed when gunmen opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah festival gathering on Australia’s Bondi Beach a week ago.
The elder gunman, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, was killed in a shootout with police.
His 24-year-old son Naveed survived and has been charged on multiple counts including terrorism and 15 murders.
These are the 15 shooting victims, aged from 10 to 87:
– ‘Ray of sunshine’ –
Ten-year-old Matilda died in hospital after being wounded in the shooting.
“Matilda is our little ray of sunshine,” said the rabbi leading her funeral service this week in Sydney, reading a message from her school.
“She is genuinely the most kind, caring and compassionate young girl, who brightened everyone’s day with her radiant smile and infectious laugh.”
The girl’s family asked for her surname not to be made public.
– Couple battled gunman –
Retired mechanic and Bondi local Boris Gurman and his wife, Sofia, tackled Sajid Akram and were among the first victims in the shooting.
Dashcam footage showed Boris Gurman, 69, knocking Akram to the ground and wresting away his gun. His wife Sofia, 61, dashed towards him in support.
But Akram reportedly managed to get another gun, and the couple were shot and killed.
“Boris was a retired mechanic, and Sofia was working at Australia Post for the past five years. They lived honest, hardworking lives and treated everyone with care and respect,” the family said in a statement.
– Oldest victim –
Retired engineer and Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman, 87, was the oldest person killed.
“We were standing and suddenly came the ‘boom boom’, and everybody fell down. At this moment, he was behind me, and at one moment, he decided to go close to me. He pushed his body up because he wanted to stay near me,” his wife, Larisa, told The Australian newspaper.
Alex Kleytman was a native of Ukraine and a Holocaust survivor, according to a website of the Chabad movement, which represents a branch of Hasidic Jews and organised the Bondi event.
“The two gunmen killed him, but his memories, his legacy, and his books will bring light for generations to come,” his family said.
– ‘Amazing’ Holocaust survivor –
Another Holocaust survivor, Marika Pogany, was seated in the front row of the annual Hanukkah event when the gunmen opened fire, Chabad said.
Aged 82, she had lived in Australia for decades and was honoured in 2022 for her work delivering kosher meals on wheels, the group said.
“Her kindness, laughter, and generosity left a lasting mark on everyone she met,” her family said in a statement.
– ‘Protecting lives’ –
Reuven Morrison, reportedly a 62-year-old businessman who migrated from the Soviet Union in the 1970s, has been praised for trying to distract the gunmen.
“From my sources and understanding, he had jumped up the second the shooting started. He managed to throw bricks at the terrorist,” his daughter Sheina Gutnick told CBS News in Sydney.
“My dear father, Reuven Morrison, was shot dead for being Jewish at a Hanukkah event on Bondi Beach while protecting lives.”
– Shielding a friend –
Tibor Weitzen, 78, was killed while protecting a friend at the event, which he had reportedly joined with his wife and grandchildren.
His grandson Mendy Amzalak told The Australian that he had rushed to the scene on the beach as a first responder.
“My wife called me, so I ran down to the beach with my defibrillator and the shooting was still going. I started treating people, and then I came across his body. He had been shielding a longtime friend of his wife.”
– French amateur footballer –
Dan Elkayam, a 27-year-old IT engineer, budding amateur footballer and French citizen, was building a new life in Sydney after moving to Australia last year.
“He travelled the world and was known for his gentle, kind, fun and loving nature, making friends wherever he went,” his family said.
Sydney’s Rockdale Ilinden football club remembered Elkayam as an “extremely talented and popular figure amongst teammates”.
– Ex-policeman, rugby fan –
Retired police detective-sergeant and local rugby club member Peter Meagher was on a freelance photographic assignment at the Hanukkah festival.
“The tragic irony… that he spent so long in the dangerous front line as a Police Officer and was struck down in retirement while taking photos in his passion role is really hard to comprehend,” Randwick Rugby said in a statement.
In a statement to Australian media, his family said they were “heartbroken” by his death.
– Dad known for kindness –
Rabbi Yaakov Levitan was a 39-year-old father of four renowned for his work for others, the Chabad movement said.
He founded an initiative helping charities to raise funds and was “known for his kindness and tireless work in assisting others”.
The married man had four children aged six to 16, it said.
– Rabbi ‘the very best of us’ –
Rabbi Eli Schlanger — known as the “Bondi Rabbi” — was among those killed.
The 41-year-old was a community leader and father of five who helped organise the Bondi Beach gathering.
“Anyone who knew him knew that he was the very best of us,” said Alex Ryvchin from the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
Schlanger served as a chaplain for the New South Wales correctional service and a major hospital, Chabad said.
– ‘Walking at Bondi Beach’ –
Adam Smyth, a 50-year-old father of four and husband to Katrina, was shot and killed.
“Adam and Katrina were walking at Bondi Beach on Sunday evening when they found themselves in the middle of the horrific and devastating attack,” his family said in a statement.
“Their shared love of family and friends, travel and sport -– if not always the same team -– made their time together truly special.”
– ‘Very, very passionate’ –
Anti-discrimination worker Edith Brutman was also among those killed, according to her Jewish community service organisation, B’nai B’rith NSW, cited by the Sydney Morning Herald.
A fellow worker at B’nai B’rith, Ernie Friedlander, told the paper: “She was a very clever lady, and she was very, very passionate about dealing with prejudice and discrimination.”
– ‘Warm, generous’ –
Described as a “warm, generous, and deeply sociable man”, Boris Tetleroyd was killed and his son wounded in the attack, according to their family.
“Our beloved husband and father, Boris Tetleroyd, was killed during the attack at the Hanukkah gathering in Bondi. His son, Yakov Tetleroyd, was seriously injured and is currently recovering after multiple surgeries,” they said in a statement to Australian media.
– At the beach with family –
Tania Tretiak, a 68-year-old grandmother, was the last person to be identified among the dead.
Tretiak was named by her family, according to Australian public broadcaster ABC. Local media said she was at the Hanukkah event with family.
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