Man Who Tackled Bondi Beach Shooter Had Expected To Die During His Heroic Act

On December 14, 2025, sixteen people were killed and more than forty others were injured in a shooting on Sydney's Bondi Beach during the celebration of the first day of Hanukkah.

Among the injured was Ahmed al-Ahmed, who was on the scene to order a cup of coffee when he realized that an attack was in progress. He was able to sneak up on one of two gunmen and wrestled the rifle away from him, stopping him from continuing his attack. He sustained multiple injuries during the confrontation, including gunshot wounds to his arm.

You can see al-Ahmed confront the shooter here:

The two gunmen were stopped after a shooting match with the police. One of the gunmen was killed in action, while the other was apprehended.

Amid their grieving, social media users praised al-Ahmed for his bravery.

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Ahmed al-Ahmed has since had surgery to address his injuries, and his cousin, Jozay Alkanj, who he'd met for coffee that day, shared that his cousin's immediate concern was helping people, even though he thought he was going to die.

Alkanj reflected:

"He said, 'I'm going to die. Please see my family and tell them that I went down to save people's lives.'"

"He doesn't regret what he did. He said he'd do it again."

"But the pain has started to take a toll on him."

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns visited al-Ahmed while he was still in the hospital and sat on the edge of his hospital bed to speak with him about his heroic act.

Minns called the father of two a real-life hero.

"Ahmed is a real-life hero. Last night, his incredible bravery no doubt saved countless lives when he disarmed a terrorist at enormous personal risk."

"It was an honour to spend time with him just now and to pass on the thanks of people across NSW."

Ahmed al-Ahmed is now recovering from his injuries and can walk away from this experience knowing that his heroic actions saved lives.