New South Wales Police say that 10 people have died including one gunman following a shooting at Bondi Beach
At least 12 others were also injured, police say, and two officers were shot during the incident
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese describes the scenes in Bondi as “shocking and distressing”
An eyewitness that spoke to the BBC described running with his children from a Hanukkah event that was being held on the beach when the shooting began
Police say it is still unknown if the incident is connected to the Hanukkah event
With police confirming 10 people are dead this attack has become the deadliest shooting in this country since the Port Arthur attack rocked the nation.
In 1996, 35 people were killed, and scores were hurt, when a lone gunmen opened fire at a historic site in Tasmania.
That attack was a turning point, famously prompting the government to introduce some of the world’s strictest gun control measures. There was a gun buyback scheme, and increased checks on owners, and attacks radically dropped.
We’ve only had a handful of mass shootings since, most of them horrific acts of domestic violence – not public place attacks like today.
This is an unfamiliar, and devastating, shock for Australia.
