1 00:00:00,200 --> 00:00:04,120 S1: His cowardly act of terrifying violence is shocking and painful 2 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:08,400 S1: to see, and represents some of our worst fears about terrorism. 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:09,480 S1: In Sydney. 4 00:00:11,160 --> 00:00:14,680 S2: From the newsrooms of the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, 5 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:19,279 S2: this is the morning edition. I'm Samantha Seelinger Morris. As 6 00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:22,360 S2: we record this on Sunday night, 12 people have been 7 00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:25,799 S2: confirmed killed in a mass shooting in Sydney, with the 8 00:00:25,800 --> 00:00:29,720 S2: New South Wales Police commissioner declaring it a terrorist incident. 9 00:00:29,880 --> 00:00:33,600 S2: Multiple people were also injured at Bondi Beach, where hundreds 10 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:36,360 S2: of people were gathered to mark the first night of Hanukkah, 11 00:00:36,600 --> 00:00:40,479 S2: the most joyous holiday on the Jewish calendar. Among the 12 00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:43,680 S2: injured is a survivor of the October 7th attack in Israel, 13 00:00:43,880 --> 00:00:46,519 S2: who said he moved to Australia only two weeks ago 14 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:51,280 S2: to work with the Jewish community to fight anti-Semitism today. 15 00:00:51,560 --> 00:00:54,600 S2: Chief reporter Jordan Baker from the scene of the Bondi 16 00:00:54,600 --> 00:01:02,580 S2: Beach massacre. So, Jordan, you are at Bondi right now. 17 00:01:02,580 --> 00:01:05,340 S2: You went there shortly after reports of shots fired at 18 00:01:05,340 --> 00:01:08,740 S2: a communal event. So what is the scene like there now? 19 00:01:09,340 --> 00:01:13,380 S3: It's very bleak. Sam are there? People are just wandering 20 00:01:13,380 --> 00:01:16,060 S3: around in a daze. You know, I spoke to people 21 00:01:16,100 --> 00:01:23,580 S3: who have just watched, uh, you know, people being massacred. Um, they, 22 00:01:23,620 --> 00:01:26,860 S3: you know, were telling me what was happening, and, and 23 00:01:26,900 --> 00:01:30,819 S3: their voice was, was cracking. They didn't they didn't believe 24 00:01:30,819 --> 00:01:34,580 S3: what they'd just seen. I don't think anyone has believes 25 00:01:34,860 --> 00:01:36,660 S3: what's just happened here tonight. 26 00:01:36,980 --> 00:01:39,860 S1: I very sadly need to report that as of now, 27 00:01:40,260 --> 00:01:43,660 S1: there are at least 12 individuals that have been killed. 28 00:01:44,300 --> 00:01:47,580 S1: One of the offenders has also been killed and one 29 00:01:47,580 --> 00:01:51,900 S1: is in custody. This attack was designed to target Sydney's 30 00:01:51,940 --> 00:01:56,420 S1: Jewish community. On the first day of Hanukkah, what should 31 00:01:56,460 --> 00:01:59,220 S1: have been a night of peace and joy celebrated in 32 00:01:59,260 --> 00:02:04,230 S1: that community with families and supporters has been shattered by 33 00:02:04,230 --> 00:02:06,830 S1: this horrifying evil attack. 34 00:02:07,350 --> 00:02:11,230 S3: Um, you know, the paramedics, the surf lifesavers, the the 35 00:02:11,230 --> 00:02:14,870 S3: the police. Which guy who was, um, at the function? 36 00:02:14,910 --> 00:02:20,110 S3: He's a Jewish chaplain with the emergency service. And, you know, 37 00:02:20,150 --> 00:02:22,190 S3: he had he still had blood on his hands and 38 00:02:22,190 --> 00:02:24,430 S3: blood all over his shirt because the man next to 39 00:02:24,430 --> 00:02:28,230 S3: him at the function was shot and slumped on him. Um, 40 00:02:28,430 --> 00:02:33,109 S3: this is sort of beyond anything that anyone could have 41 00:02:33,110 --> 00:02:35,389 S3: imagined could have happened in Sydney. 42 00:02:35,910 --> 00:02:38,669 S2: And so talk to us about how this actually first unfolded. 43 00:02:38,669 --> 00:02:39,669 S2: What happened. 44 00:02:40,710 --> 00:02:43,950 S3: So there was a function, a Hanukkah function. It was 45 00:02:43,950 --> 00:02:47,390 S3: an enclosed area on the beach not far. There's a 46 00:02:47,389 --> 00:02:49,630 S3: there's a there's a concrete kind of bridge at Bondi, 47 00:02:49,630 --> 00:02:52,070 S3: which is kind of famous bridge. And it wasn't far 48 00:02:52,070 --> 00:02:53,550 S3: from there. There was quite a big area. There would 49 00:02:53,550 --> 00:02:56,590 S3: have been 150 people at this event. Um, there was 50 00:02:56,590 --> 00:02:58,830 S3: a barbecue, there was a petting zoo for the kids. 51 00:02:58,830 --> 00:03:01,630 S3: There was balloons, there was music. There was sort of, 52 00:03:01,930 --> 00:03:03,970 S3: you know, a little stage area where there were chairs 53 00:03:03,970 --> 00:03:06,930 S3: lined up for the kids to watch. I spoke to 54 00:03:06,930 --> 00:03:09,970 S3: one guy who lives in a van in the car 55 00:03:09,970 --> 00:03:12,290 S3: park at Bondi, and his van door was open. He 56 00:03:12,290 --> 00:03:14,770 S3: was sitting inside and he saw these two men, all 57 00:03:14,770 --> 00:03:19,290 S3: dressed all in black, wearing what appeared to be bulletproof vests, 58 00:03:20,130 --> 00:03:24,530 S3: just suddenly open fire on this gathering. And people obviously 59 00:03:24,530 --> 00:03:28,410 S3: started running. They started screaming. They were hiding under cars. Um, 60 00:03:28,889 --> 00:03:33,130 S3: and these men were just picking them off. And a 61 00:03:33,130 --> 00:03:37,010 S3: lot of the people from, from eyewitness reports that seem 62 00:03:37,010 --> 00:03:41,529 S3: to be elderly people who were slower are getting away. Um, 63 00:03:42,770 --> 00:03:45,450 S3: you know, and quickly people are sort of raced up 64 00:03:45,450 --> 00:03:47,610 S3: the beach or hid under cars. There were a couple 65 00:03:47,650 --> 00:03:49,850 S3: of people who ended up hiding in this man's van. 66 00:03:50,570 --> 00:03:55,970 S3: And absolute terror, shock, chaos, um, horror. You know, this 67 00:03:55,970 --> 00:03:58,650 S3: was a very hot day in Sydney. So a lot 68 00:03:58,650 --> 00:04:00,530 S3: of people at the beach, it was twilight. It was 69 00:04:00,530 --> 00:04:03,390 S3: cooling down. It was a beautiful night. Sound like there 70 00:04:03,390 --> 00:04:06,910 S3: was a purple sunset? Um. And then this horror just 71 00:04:06,910 --> 00:04:11,030 S3: unfolded on the most iconic beach in Sydney. And so 72 00:04:11,030 --> 00:04:12,390 S3: I was talking to people, you know, a couple of 73 00:04:12,390 --> 00:04:15,830 S3: guys who were in the surf, heard it happen, saw 74 00:04:15,830 --> 00:04:19,469 S3: everyone running, kind of wandered up to see what was happening. 75 00:04:19,510 --> 00:04:23,070 S3: They reckon they were sort of a hundred, 150 shots fired. 76 00:04:23,230 --> 00:04:24,870 S3: The guy in the van said he thinks it was 77 00:04:24,870 --> 00:04:27,790 S3: an assault rifle and a shotgun. You could hear the 78 00:04:27,790 --> 00:04:30,789 S3: choppers above me now. Um, you know, a couple of 79 00:04:30,790 --> 00:04:34,550 S3: the guys saw a mother and her two kids hiding 80 00:04:34,550 --> 00:04:37,310 S3: under a car. They pulled the mother out and sort 81 00:04:37,310 --> 00:04:40,589 S3: of stem the bleeding in a really bad shotgun wound 82 00:04:40,589 --> 00:04:43,750 S3: to her neck. The little girl gave them her daddy's 83 00:04:43,750 --> 00:04:46,910 S3: mobile number so they could call this woman's husband. When 84 00:04:46,910 --> 00:04:52,229 S3: I arrived, there were dozens and dozens of police cars, 85 00:04:52,270 --> 00:04:56,670 S3: ambulances lined up, getting their stretches out. There were there 86 00:04:56,670 --> 00:05:00,950 S3: were walking wounded, being ushered to the surf club. There 87 00:05:00,950 --> 00:05:04,770 S3: were people washing the blood that people surf lifesavers from Bondi, 88 00:05:04,810 --> 00:05:08,650 S3: washing them off their surf skis. It was it was terrifying. 89 00:05:08,690 --> 00:05:12,770 S3: It was horrible. It was. It was so, um, it 90 00:05:12,770 --> 00:05:16,810 S3: was such a horrific juxtaposition between this beautiful Sydney night, 91 00:05:16,850 --> 00:05:20,810 S3: like purple sky as the sun set over this iconic 92 00:05:20,810 --> 00:05:25,330 S3: beach and just the absolute horror and devastation that it 93 00:05:25,370 --> 00:05:26,770 S3: had just unfolded. 94 00:05:27,010 --> 00:05:30,170 S2: And Jordan, you've covered mass casualty incidents before, but what 95 00:05:30,170 --> 00:05:32,330 S2: is going through your mind tonight as you stand there 96 00:05:32,330 --> 00:05:33,010 S2: at Bondi? 97 00:05:33,650 --> 00:05:36,529 S3: I've never covered anything like this. I've never covered anything 98 00:05:36,529 --> 00:05:39,529 S3: like this. This is Sydney. I think, you know, this 99 00:05:39,529 --> 00:05:43,729 S3: night will change Sydney forever. Yeah. I can't, you know, 100 00:05:43,770 --> 00:05:50,169 S3: the Bondi stabbing, um, was not long ago. Absolutely horrific. 101 00:05:50,810 --> 00:05:54,090 S3: Horrendous loss of life. This is. This is a whole 102 00:05:54,089 --> 00:05:58,730 S3: different ball game. This is more dead. And it seems like, 103 00:05:58,770 --> 00:06:03,779 S3: you know, bad actors. We will find out more about 104 00:06:03,779 --> 00:06:07,380 S3: who these people were in the coming days. But I've 105 00:06:07,420 --> 00:06:09,900 S3: I've been a journalist for 25 years and I've never 106 00:06:09,900 --> 00:06:11,020 S3: seen anything like this. 107 00:06:11,540 --> 00:06:13,339 S2: Thank you so much, Jordan, for your time. 108 00:06:13,380 --> 00:06:13,979 S3: Thank you. 109 00:06:17,980 --> 00:06:21,740 S2: Today's episode of The Morning Edition was produced by Tammy Mills, 110 00:06:21,860 --> 00:06:25,780 S2: with technical assistance by Josh towers. Tom McKendrick is our 111 00:06:25,779 --> 00:06:28,780 S2: head of audio. To listen to our episodes as soon 112 00:06:28,779 --> 00:06:32,539 S2: as they drop, follow the Morning Edition on Apple, Spotify, 113 00:06:32,540 --> 00:06:36,140 S2: or wherever you listen to podcasts. Our newsrooms are powered 114 00:06:36,140 --> 00:06:40,260 S2: by subscriptions, so to support independent journalism, visit the page 115 00:06:40,260 --> 00:06:45,740 S2: or smh.com.au. Subscribe. And to stay up to date, sign 116 00:06:45,740 --> 00:06:48,300 S2: up to our Morning Edition newsletter to receive a summary 117 00:06:48,300 --> 00:06:51,940 S2: of the day's most important news in your inbox every morning. 118 00:06:52,500 --> 00:06:56,060 S2: Links are in the show. Notes. I'm Samantha Selinger. Morris, 119 00:06:56,260 --> 00:06:57,340 S2: thanks for listening.