Bondi Junction stabbings

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2024 Bondi Junction stabbings
Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre, where the stabbings took place
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Westfield Bondi Junction
Westfield Bondi Junction
Location of the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre
LocationBondi Junction, New South Wales, Australia
Date13 April 2024
c. 3:45 pm (AEST)
Attack type
Mass stabbing
WeaponsKnife
Deaths7 (including the perpetrator)
Injured8
Perpetrator40-year-old male

On 13 April 2024, a mass stabbing took place at Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, leaving seven people dead including the perpetrator. Several other people were injured, including a nine-month-old baby. The attacker, a 40-year-old male, was shot dead by a police officer. He is yet to be identified by authorities.

Background

Main article: Westfield Bondi Junction

The Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre is a major shopping center in the Sydney central business district and close to the famous Bondi Beach. It is one of the biggest and most popular shopping centres in Australia. At the time of the attack, the shopping centre was filled with hundreds of visitors spending time inside on a Saturday and the first day of school holidays.[1]

Mass casualty attacks in Australia are rare with the most recent attack occurring in 2019, where four people were killed and one injured in a mass shooting in Darwin.[2] The attack was the deadliest in Australia that resulted in civilian casualties since the January 2017 Melbourne car attack.[3]

Attack

According to the NSW Police Force, the suspect first entered Westfield Bondi Junction at around 3:10 pm AEST[4]. He allegedly left the centre before returning 10 minutes later with a knife.[5][6]

The suspect was carrying a knife reportedly around 20-30cm long[citation needed] and wearing shorts and a sports jersey.[7] Eyewitnesses said that he was behaving "erratically", and video clips from security cameras and bystanders filming showed the perpetrator lunging out at some shoppers with his weapon, while walking past others peacefully.[citation needed]

The stabbings began as the perpetrator moved across the shopping centre after he returned at 3:20 pm[8] Officers from the NSW Police Force were called shortly before 4 pm, following reports of multiple people being stabbed.[9][5] The building was evacuated[6] and public transport around the area was rerouted.[10]

The suspect was fatally shot in the chest by a police inspector who confronted him on the building's fifth floor and began to perform CPR immediately after he fell.[11][12][7][8] It is believed that the sound of the shooting alerted more people inside the shopping centre to what was going on, which led to more evacuations and store attendants locking down their premises with sheltering customers inside.[8]

Casualties

At 6:15 pm, NSW Police initially confirmed five victims had been killed along with the perpetrator, while others remained critically injured.[13] All six fatalities were adults, including five women and a man.[14]

At least eight people were hospitalised, including a nine-month-old girl who underwent surgery,[13] and her mother,[15] the latter of whom later died in hospital,[16] raising the death toll to seven.[17] Some of the injured were described to be in a critical condition.[14]

Investigation

Preliminary enquiries suggested that the attacker had acted alone[18] His motive remains unknown.[19]

At 8:30 pm, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb addressed the media, saying police believed the attacker was a 40-year-old male and that the incident was not an act of terrorism.[20] She said there was no ongoing risk to the public.[21] She also alluded that the suspect might have been known to police. The Australian Federal Police were subsequently deployed to assist the state police in their investigation.[22]

Reactions

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the attack a "horrific act of violence" and also said he had been briefed on the attack and expressed sympathies with those affected as well as first responders.[23][1] He also called the police inspector who shot the assailant a "hero".[11]

Acting NSW Premier Penny Sharpe convened a meeting of the state cabinet which also briefed Premier Chris Minns, who was in Tokyo on leave at the time of the attack. Minns said that he was “horrified to hear about the events at Bondi Junction” and along with Sharpe, expressed sympathies to those affected as well as first responders. Sharpe added that she was "personally distressed" over the stabbing.[22]

Charles III, King of Australia, stated that he and Queen Camilla were “utterly shocked and horrified” by the “senseless attack” and expressed sympathies for “the families and loved ones of those who have been so brutally killed.”[24] The Prince and Princess of Wales issued a statement on Twitter expressing grief over the event while also praising the "heroic emergency responders who risked their own lives to save others."[25][26]

References

  1. ^ a b Turnball, Tiffanie; Watson, Katy; Faulkner, Doug (13 April 2024). "'It was carnage' - Eyewitnesses describe Sydney stabbing horror". BBC News.
  2. ^ Tanno, Sophie (13 April 2024). "Mass casualty events are rare in Australia". CNN. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  3. ^ Kim, Victoria; Zhuang, Yan; Kwai, Isabella (13 April 2024). "Live Updates: At Least 6 Dead in Mall Stabbing That Horrifies Australians". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  4. ^ Sidhu, Sandi; Rebane, Teele; Tanno, Sophie (13 April 2024). "Six dead in mass stabbing at Sydney shopping center". CNN. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Five people killed in stabbing attack at Sydney's Westfield Bondi Junction, alleged offender shot dead". ABC News. 13 April 2024. Archived from the original on 13 April 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Six people killed, attacker shot dead in shopping centre stabbing attack". 9news.com.au. 13 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Six killed, several injured in Sydney mall stabbing". Al Jazeera. 13 April 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  8. ^ a b c "What we know about how the Bondi Junction shopping centre stabbing spree unfolded". ABC News. 13 April 2024.
  9. ^ "Multiple people killed in Bondi Junction stabbing attack". Sydney Morning Herald. 13 April 2024. Archived from the original on 13 April 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Bondi Junction buses out of action". ABC News. 13 April 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Police officer who shot dead Bondi Junction stabbing offender hailed a hero". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 13 April 2024.
  12. ^ Kim, Victoria; Zhuang, Yan; Kwai, Isabella (13 April 2024). "Live Updates: At Least 6 Dead in Mall Stabbing That Horrifies Australians". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  13. ^ a b Rycroft, Rick (13 April 2024). "'Run, run, run': Chaos at a Sydney mall as 6 people stabbed to death, and the suspect fatally shot". Associated Press.
  14. ^ a b Vidal, Paulina; Kozaki, Danuta (13 April 2024). "Six people killed in stabbing attack at Sydney's Westfield Bondi Junction, offender shot dead by police officer". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  15. ^ "Five dead, multiple injured after knife attack on Sydney shopping centre". Al Jazeera. 13 April 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  16. ^ "Bondi Junction stabbing, shooting live updates". Sydney Morning Herald.
  17. ^ Lyons, Kate; Visontay, Elias (13 April 2024). "Sydney stabbing live updates: Westfield Bondi Junction attack leaves seven dead, including attacker shot by police, and multiple people in critical condition". The Guardian.
  18. ^ "Live: Westfield Bondi Junction evacuated amid reports of multiple stabbings and shots fired". ABC News. 13 April 2024. Archived from the original on 13 April 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  19. ^ "Man kills five in stabbing attack at mall in Sydney's Bondi Junction". The Washington Post. 13 April 2024.
  20. ^ "'Not terrorism': Police Commissioner provides details about attacker, victims". 13 April 2024. Archived from the original on 13 April 2024.
  21. ^ "WATCH: NSW Police Commissioner says 'no going risk' to public". ABC News. 13 April 2024.
  22. ^ a b Vidal, Paulina; Kozaki, Danuta (13 April 2024). "Six people killed in stabbing attack at Sydney's Westfield Bondi Junction, offender shot dead by police officer". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  23. ^ "Sydney stabbing: seven people dead, including attacker shot by police at Bondi Junction shopping centre". The Guardian. 13 April 2024.
  24. ^ "Several dead in knife attack at Sydney shopping centre". France 24. 13 April 2024.
  25. ^ "We are shocked and saddened by the terrible events in Sydney earlier today. Our thoughts are with all those affected, including the loved ones of those lost and the heroic emergency responders who risked their own lives to save others. W & C". Twitter. 13 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. ^ Sawer, Patrick (13 April 2024). "Prince and Princess of Wales 'shocked and saddened' by Sydney stabbings". The Daily Telegraph.
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