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NSW Health says 25 patients still in hospital
We have an update from NSW Health, who say there are currently twenty-five patients receiving care in several Sydney hospitals for their injuries.
Six are classified as being in a critical condition, four critical but stable. And an additional 15 have classified as stable.
More to come.
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Caitlin Cassidy
The crowd of mourners at Bondi Pavilion continues to be quiet and sombre. There is a diverse array of people here, from dog walkers to babies in strollers and elderly couples in running gear.
A Jewish group is handing out free sufganiyah - a traditional Jewish doughnut popular during Hanukkah - and leading prayers. There are many tears, and many hugs.
Every major news station is broadcasting from the grassy hill this morning, and has been visited by the opposition leader, Sussan Ley, and NSW Liberal leader Kelly Sloane. The Ceo of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, Alex Rivkin, is also here.
NSW Health says 25 patients still in hospital
We have an update from NSW Health, who say there are currently twenty-five patients receiving care in several Sydney hospitals for their injuries.
Six are classified as being in a critical condition, four critical but stable. And an additional 15 have classified as stable.
More to come.
PM says one alleged gunman was interviewed by Asio in 2019 but was not at that time a 'person of interest'
Albanese said Naveed Akram – one of two alleged gunmen – and his family and acquaintances were interviewed by Asio while under investigation in 2019, but he was “not seen at that time to be a person of interest”.
“He was drawn to their attention because of his association with others. Two of the people he was associated with were charged and went to jail,” Albanese told ABC Radio Sydney.
“Now, whether he was radicalised further after that, what the circumstances are, that’s the subject of further investigation.”
National cabinet agrees gun licences will not be issued in perpetuity
Krishani Dhanji
The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, says the government has already acted on a series of recommendations to combat antisemitism by the government’s special envoy, Jillian Segal, including to make doxxing illegal, and banning Nazi symbols.
Things like making doxing illegal, which we’ve done, you’ll see in the report wanting to strengthen our laws on hate crimes. We’ve now got the toughest laws at we’ve ever had in fuelling violence.
Speaking to the Today show this morning, Burke is facing questions on how the 50-year-old father was able to keep a gun license when his 24-year-old son had been monitored by spy agency Asio.
Burke says he acknowledges security checks can’t be “one and done”. Last night’s national cabinet meeting agreed gun licenses would no longer be issued in perpetuity. Burke says:
There’s a separate issue as to whether or not within family groups how how this is looked at. There is another issue which national cabinet dealt with yesterday about once a gun license is issued, how regularly it needs to be renewed. These licences should not be something where security checks are done at the start and then not revisited it.
Australia must combat extremism while ‘learning how to disagree well’, Spender says
People are wrapping their arms around each other, Spender says, but at the same time, the broader response needs to go beyond care and sympathy.
How do we as a country do whatever we can to prevent this happening again? And that is combating antisemitism and combating extremism.
I don’t think this reflects Australia - these were Islamic extremists, and the person who did most to save people was a Muslim man. He is a better reflection of our country, but we do have extreme elements here, and that creates fear. That said, there is more prevalent antisemitism now than I’ve ever seen it. Most of it is nowhere near the extremism we saw on the weekend but it does mean the Jewish community feels very isolated.
You have to combat the extremism which I think led to the physical attack but we also have the question of how to make sure we as a country can disagree well, but we still belong.
Caitlin Cassidy
The local member for Wentworth, Allegra Spender, pays her respects
Among those paying their respects at Bondi Pavilion on Tuesday morning is the local member for Wentworth, Allegra Spender.
Spender was seen wrapping her arms around a Rabbi and hugging community members who have come down to lay flowers.
Like “so many people”, Spender was at Bondi on Sunday afternoon until about 5pm with her children in the waves. She was celebrating a family Christmas dinner in Bronte when news of the attack broke.
She tells Guardian Australia, “everybody is really struggling”.
The community is completely devastated and it’s still incredibly hard to comprehend. People coming like they are today to show their respect is really, really important ... those shows of support. Many people I know lit candles for Hanukah tonight ... those are the things that really matter.
PM outlines potential gun reforms in wake of Bondi terror attack
Asked about gun reforms, the PM said the government was going to look at limiting the amount of guns one person can own, the type of guns people can own and only allowing citizens to be able to own guns.
He said many jurisdictions don’t use a digital system and don’t talk to each other about gun ownership:
Some state governments still have paper processes for the registration of firearms, so it’s impossible to check if you don’t have a digitised system. And so we’re accelerating that $100m and $60m program. More than $100m has been provided to states and territories, which is where guns are registered, to enable them to digitise their system.
He said the juristictons need to work together:
The system is only as strong as its weakest link, and if you have New South Wales laws tightened, but no changes were made in all of the other states… [it won’t work] … which is why I brought together the national cabinet.
Albanese defends antisemitism record
The PM has been asked if his government has done enough to combat antisemitism:
It would appear that this was motivated by Islamic State ideology, the ideology that has been around for more than a decade, which led to this ideology of hate, and, in this case, preparedness to engage in mass murder.
We are working as hard as we can. Antisemitism, tragically, has been around for a long period of time. We have been the first government to legislate for hate symbols, for Nazi symbols, for hate speech. We have established an envoy on antisemitism. We have appointed a national ombudsman to look after those issues.
We have a program as well into schools that has been the first one that’s been established as a result of those recommendations, we have been working as hard as we can, engaging with Jewish community leaders.
PM says Five Eyes network being brought into Bondi shooting investigation
The PM has just been speaking on ABC Sydney:
This was a meticulous, calculated, cold-blooded attack.
Now the investigations will, of course, continue. Those investigations are being led by New South Wales police, but through the joint counterterrorism team. That will involve not just the Australian Federal Police, but also our agencies Asio, who look after domestic security and ASIS, who look after our international issues, and we are certainly reaching out to Five Eyes partners, our security partners internationally as well.
Those investigations will continue, and will continue to inform Australians as those investigations proceed.
Krishani Dhanji
Opposition leader continues attacks on Labor’s handling of antisemitism
The opposition leader, Sussan Ley, has now joined Sunrise, and says the government failed by not addressing antisemitism in the community.
She reiterates that the government should implement the recommendations from special envoy on antisemitism Jillian Segal’s report, and says that the opposition will offer bipartisan support to increase resourcing for security agencies.
Segal said yesterday that her 13 recommendations - handed to the government in July - focus on education, and cracking down on education, arts and cultural institutions that fail to address antisemitism.
Ley claims to Sunrise the government hasn’t acted on antisemitism as a priority.
This scourge of antisemitism that is talked about needs to be acted on in a way across government and given the priority that, sadly, it hasn’t had.
I hear from young women at university about what they have experienced on-campus, and I know there’s been nothing coming from this … to actually [hold] universities to account.
Bondi on Tuesday morning
Caitlin Cassidy
Dozens of mourners have gathered at the Bondi Pavilion on Tuesday morning to pay their respects to the victims of Sunday night’s terrorist attack.
Some wrap their arms around each other, whilst others carry flowers to lay at an ever-growing memorial. A woman still in her bathers and towel stares at the display with tears flowing down her cheeks. Many stand arms crossed in reflective silence.
The Australian and Israeli flags are hung at the pavilion’s gates.
A portion of Campbell Parade is still cut off to traffic with police tape hung by strewn electric bicycles. There is still a large police presence on the ground, as well as council vehicles sweeping the streets.
Multifaith coalition reiterates solidarity with Jewish community in joint statement
There was a meeting last night between religious leaders from the city’s largest denominations, convened by the state minister for multiculturalism.
A statement from the New South Wales (NSW) Faith Affairs Council said they “expressed their deepest sympathies for the people killed in the horrific attack” and “reiterated their solidarity with the Jewish community”.
Jewish clergy leaders addressed the meeting which included Christian, Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu faith leaders, with one senior rabbi saying communities could show support by lighting a Hanukah candle or engaging in charity.
In the immediate aftermath of the attack on Sunday, the council had declared:
We will not let hatred and violence divide us. Across all our cultures and faiths, will stand united in sympathy, compassion and solidarity.”
Minister Kamper said: “Australians of all faiths must work together, unambiguously, to restore faith in NSW’s multiculturalism.”
Sydney in particular is a highly multicultural city, viewed by residents as largely harmonious and peaceful – where nearly 40% of the population was born overseas and more than a third of people speak a language other than English at home.
Ley says gun law investigations ‘ongoing’
Yesterday, Ley said it was too early to talk about gun laws. Asked about it now, she said:
Following the national cabinet, we’ll take a sensible, proportionate examination of the proposals, of course we would. And Australians are rightly saying this doesn’t make sense.
But that investigation is ongoing, and we’ll let it take its course. Important though that is, we cannot take a step away from the issue that is underpinning so much of the pain here in the community. And that’s antisemitism.
Opposition leader continues attacks on government over alleged lack of action on antisemitism
Sussan Ley is being interviewed by ABC at Bondi. She says the government needs to do more about antisemitism.
This has come against a backdrop of anger and despair and disappointment. Because, for every day, for the last two years, the lives of Jewish Australians have been made harder by the rising tide of antisemitism.
And that’s what so many spoke to me about yesterday. That they’ve heard a lot of words, they want to see action.
Dreyfus backs stricter gun laws
Asked about gun laws, Dreyfus said there should be stricter regulations on how many guns people could have and only allowing citizens to own them.
People having six guns, possibly rapid firing, in their position, is more than anyone could want, and so for the national cabinet to meet yesterday and say right away, we think we should require citizenship to get a gun license, and we think there should be more limitations on the number of guns.
They seem like obvious reforms.
Health minister says 26 people still hospitalised, including children
There are still 26 people in hospital who were injured in the Bondi terror attack, the NSW health minister, Ryan Park, has told Nine’s Today program.
A dozen of them were still in critical condition and “will have ongoing surgery for devastating injuries”, Park said.
A number of children were in a serious condition, Park confirmed.
He commended hospital clinicians and staff who have “no doubt saved lives”.
