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Two terrorists – a father and son – opened fire at a Hanukkah by the Sea celebration at Bondi Beach on Sunday, killing 16 people, including a 10-year-old girl, in Australia’s worst mass shooting since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. A further 40 people were injured, including four children.
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Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and his family attended the Brisbane Hanukkah event, as did Queensland MP Charis Mullen.
“Tonight my family and I joined Brisbane’s Jewish community on the first night of Hanukkah. This afternoon’s shocking attack during a Bondi Beach Hanukkah celebration is horrific and distressing,” Schrinner said in statement on Sunday night.
“We are a peaceful and loving nation and the deliberate targeting of any group isn’t just an attack on them, it’s an attack on us all and our way of life.”
Premier David Crisafulli said he had contacted Jewish community leaders to offer his prayers and support in what will be difficult days and weeks ahead.
“I want to assure Queenslanders the Queensland Police Service remains vigilant this evening,” he said.
Opposition Leader Steven Miles said he was deeply shaken by the horrific news.
“Hate has no place in Australia. This was an act of antisemitism, and I stand with the Jewish community and with everyone affected by this violence,” he said.
Queensland’s security cabinet convened on Monday morning, and Crisafulli was due to join a national security cabinet later in the day.
The lights were dimmed on the Story, Kangaroo Point and Victoria bridges to acknowledge the tragedy.
People placed flowers on the fence of the Brisbane Synagogue on Monday morning in a show of solidarity with the Jewish community.Credit: Julius Dennis
Tensions, however, rose outside Brisbane’s synagogue on Monday morning, where people laid brightly coloured flowers in solidarity with the Bondi victims.
A truck driver delivering goods to a neighbouring worksite took issue with being asked by Jaffe’s son to move his vehicle away from the place of worship.
“For security reasons we have to be very, very careful and conscious about people that park their cars outside the synagogue, and my son simply asked the driver ... whether he had some kind of permit,” Jaffe said.
“The driver for whatever reason wasn’t very happy to get that kind of question. It’s unfortunate that this happened this morning, but it was just a little incident.
A delivery truck driver clashing with people from the synagogue.Credit: Julius Dennis
“It was just simply a case of a driver not being very happy about being questioned in a way that he wasn’t comfortable [with] ... these things happen.”
At one point a man on a moped drove out of the synagogue and again asked the driver to leave.
The entire confrontation happened in front of watching media, with the driver at one stage coming over to speak to the cameras, claiming he was being criticised and humiliated for doing his job.
Police arrived at about 7.30 and asked the man to leave after taking his details. Credit: Julius Dennis
Despite Queensland police releasing a statement that there would be heightened security at Jewish places of worship Sunday night there were no officers at the scene for at least 15 minutes.
Officers arrived just before 7.30am and spoke to the man before asking him to leave.
Jaffe was concerned people would understandably stay away from the synagogue on Monday morning.
But he said worshippers arrived with “incredible spirit” to continue marking Hanukkah, the eight-day festival of light.
“It was so heartwarming. I actually said to the people, ‘what you’re doing, is you’re really living the Hanukkah spirit by being here today ... in not allowing this event to affect our way of life and our beliefs’,” he said.
“We’ll continue to be here and we’ll continue to bring light into the world.
“Everyone should bring a little bit more light into their life and into the world and by doing so, we’ll make this world a better place.
“Ultimately, light will prevail over darkness and goodness will prevail over evil. That’s really the only message that I can say.
“I’m talking to you from a broken heart … [but] it is our firm belief that goodness will prevail.”
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