‘My soul asked me to do that’: Bondi hero breaks silence on tackling gunman

“My soul asked me to do that,” said Ahmed al Ahmed, the hero who tackled and disarmed gunman Sajid Akram during the Bondi Beach terrorist attack.

In an interview with US broadcaster CBS, al Ahmed described for the first time the moments he grappled with Akram and wrenched a pump-action shotgun away from the man who had been firing at Jewish people attending a Hanukkah event on December 14.

“I jumped in his back, hit him and … hold him with my right hand and start to say a word like, you know, to warn him, ‘Drop your gun, stop doing what you’re doing’,” al Ahmed said.

In footage viewed by millions of people, al Ahmed can be seen springing from between two parked cars at 6.45pm and grabbing Akram.

“Emotionally I’m doing something … I feel something, a power in my body, my brain and I don’t want to see people killed in front of me, I don’t want to see blood, I don’t want to hear his gun, I don’t want to, you know, see people screaming and begging, asking ‘help, help’.

“That’s my soul asked me to do that, and everything in my heart, and my brain, everything just worked, you know, to manage and to save the people’s life,” he said.

Ahmed al Ahmed tackles gunman Sajid Akram at Bondi.

Al Ahmed, a 44-year-old tobacco shop owner who had been having coffee with a friend near the beach when the attack started, is still recovering from at least two gunshot wounds to his left arm.

With his arm in a sling, he told CBS correspondent Anna Coren he was not worried about the second gunman – Sajid’s son Naveed Akram – and was focused purely on disarming the attacker nearest to him.

“No, I wasn’t worried about anything,” he said. “I was just … my target was just to take the gun from him, and to stop him from killing a human being life and not killing innocent people.”

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Asked by Coren if he realised his actions saved countless lives, al Ahmed said: “I know I save lots of people’s life, innocent kids and woman and oldest and man. I know I saved lots but I feel sorry still for the lost.”

Al Ahmed has been hailed as a national hero by many for his selfless actions, which forced Sajid Akram to retreat to the footbridge without a weapon after he had been advancing closer to the Hanukkah festival site.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said al Ahmed represented the best of Australia.

“He was trying to get a cup of coffee, simple as that, and found himself at a moment where people were being shot in front of him,” Albanese said.

“He decided to take action, and his bravery is an inspiration for all Australians. He is a very humble man.”

King Charles and US President Donald Trump were among other leaders who praised al Ahmed’s bravery.

A GoFundMe account set up to support al Ahmed’s recovery has raised over $2.6 million so far.

The Ten Network, a subsidiary of US broadcaster CBS, did not disclose whether its interview with al Ahmed involved payment.

Al Ahmed migrated to Australia from Syria in 2006. He grew up in the village of Al Nayrab, a war-torn settlement near Idlib, a city used as a base for the Syrian rebels who overthrew the Assad regime after a protracted civil war.

His uncle, Wahid al Ahmed, told the ABC his nephew had previously served in the Syrian military.

“He was properly trained, physically strong, and full of energy, enthusiasm and determination,” he said.

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