It was billed as an evening of peace and unity. And it was, until Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrived.
The crowd, which had been gathering on the grass overlooking the ocean and embracing old friends in shared grief, suddenly took to its feet as one. It booed, and it shouted “shame”. The anger was electric. It vibrated across the beach, to the footbridge where two gunmen opened fire on a peaceful Hanukkah celebration one week before, almost to the hour.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrives at the vigil at Bondi on Sunday evening.Credit: Edwina Pickles
Albanese looked straight ahead, his face fixed in a stare. Moments later, the boos turned to cheering as former prime minister John Howard, who last week said the attack was about antisemitism over guns, walked in, waving.
The fury towards Albanese was palpable. It had already been simmering before he arrived. “If Albo comes, I’ll … ” said one member of the crowd, trailing off before finishing the sentence. A mourner ran at the prime minister as he arrived, prompting police to hold him back.
The prime minister was jeered again, moments after the minute’s silence, when he was introduced to the crowd by the president of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies David Ossip. That reception was followed by a standing ovation for Premier Chris Minns, NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane, and for the father of Ahmed al Ahmed, who was shot when he disarmed the gunman.
“The terrorists have picked the wrong community to mess with because we, the Jewish people, are unbreakable,” Ossip told the crowd, while also calling for a royal commission following last Sunday’s massacre.
The Jewish community vigil began exactly a week after last Sunday’s attack.Credit: Edwina Pickles
The Jewish community is still coming to terms with last Sunday’s terrible events.Credit: AP
The anger towards the prime minister was set aside when it was time to mourn. The thousands had gathered by the beach on Sunday evening for another reason; to remember the 15 people who died. Yet their grief and their howls of pain over the past week made the minute’s silence even more stark. The quiet settled over Bondi at 6.47pm as dusk fell. It was thunderous in its unity and power.
Hanukkah celebrates the triumph of light over darkness. Over the past week, Sydney has felt dark indeed. But the menorah candles at Sunday’s vigil, gentle against the twilight, signalled a determination that the darkness would not win. As night descended, a spotlight shot a beam of light to the heavens.
“May the memories of those who we lost be a blessing, may the injured be healed, may our sorrows be comforted, may all those heroes … be blessed and rewarded,” said Rabbi Yehoram Ulman, whose son-in-law, Eli Schlanger, was killed in the attack.
Organisers estimate crowds of 20,000 attended the event to mark the National Day of Reflection for victims and survivors.Credit: Edwina Pickles
The crowd numbered in the thousands. One woman, who wanted to be known only as Della, had been one of the first to arrive. “I was born in Bondi,” she said. “Bondi is my heart and my soul. My parents came from the Holocaust, they were the only survivors in the family. I don’t live close any more, but it’s my heart and my soul … I couldn’t be anywhere else.”
They ranged from the elderly to the very young. As Governor-General Sam Mostyn spoke about barbarism and read a letter from the King, two preschoolers lay among the crowd with their mother, listening and chewing on lollipops. “What’s barbarism?” they asked. Their mother stroked their foreheads, silent and sad.
From buildings towering over the fenced-off vigil site, heavily armed snipers were standing with their guns. The beach was thick with scores of security and police, including the Tactical Operations Unit and riot squad, patrolling the perimeter.
The service was held at the site of last Sunday’s attack in which 15 people were killed.Credit: Edwina Pickles
NSW Premier Chris Minns, who received a standing ovation when his attendance was announced to the crowd.Credit: Edwina Pickles
The vigil was attended by the most powerful in the land. Minns was there, wearing a kippah, as were state Treasurer Daniel Mookhey and the president of the upper house, Penny Sharpe. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley arrived with NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane, who spoke of her own experience last week, when she rushed to Bondi as soon as she heard of the attack.
Last week, the menorah – a Hanukkah candelabra – was to be lit at 7pm. The gunmen opened fire at 6.42. At the vigil, another was lit in their memory.
The candles were lit by the heroes of the terrorist attack, including the father of hero Ahmed al Ahmed, Mohammed; first responders and lifesavers; Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon, on behalf of police; and Vladimir Kotlyar, a chaplain for the SES, which treated the injured. Relatives of some of those who were killed also lit candles.
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