An overwhelmed police officer leans over near the bodies of Boris and Sofia Gurman. The Gurmans, who were just weeks away from their 35th wedding anniversary, were killed during the Bondi Beach Terror Attack in Sydney, Australia while attempting to disarm one of the shooters.
During Bondi Beach’s 'Chanukah by the Sea,' a community event celebrating the Jewish holiday, two armed men motivated by ISIS ideology attacked participants, killing 15 people. The first victims were Boris (69) and Sofia (61) Gurman, a Ukrainian-Jewish couple who had migrated to Australia decades earlier. Dashcam footage revealed that as the gunmen exited their vehicle, the couple did not flee. Instead, Boris approached one of the attackers and successfully wrested a rifle away. Shortly after, Syrian-Australian shopkeeper Ahmed al-Ahmed charged the second gunman and disarmed him. In their struggles against the gunmen, al-Ahmed was shot twice and wounded, and the Gurmans were killed. According to authorities, these collective acts of defiance delayed the shooters and saved lives.
Other victims included 10-year-old Matilda and 87-year-old Ukrainian Holocaust survivor Alexander Kleytman. Kleytman reportedly died while shielding his wife from gunfire. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the mass shooting an antisemitic attack, characterizing it as a terrorist incident; it was Australia’s worst mass shooting in three decades.
The shooting has prompted a significant re-evaluation of public security and religious freedom protections in Australia. Following the tragedy, thousands gathered for a commemorative paddle-out at Bondi Beach to honor the victims, while the federal government fast-tracked reviews of national security laws and the protection of faith-based gatherings.
