It’s impossible to make sense of the Dec. 14 Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack.
What we know is that two men, a father-son duo reportedly inspired by ISIS, opened fire on a crowded Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia, purposely targeting and killing Jewish people. The victims number 15 people, including Rabbi Eli Schlanger, the Chabad emissary in charge of Chabad of Bondi, Alex Kleytman, an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor who sought refuge in Australia, and Matilda Britvan, a 10-year-old girl whose Jewish family came from Ukraine to find safety in Australia.
Fifteen people were killed this past Sunday at an event intended to celebrate Jewish joy.
It would be easy to focus only on the darkness of this reality. But somehow, amongst the horror, there are some stories, some small moments, that show our resilience amidst the pain. Here are some video clips that highlight the people who tried their best to help, the ways we can remember the victims and the antidote to fear and darkness: pride and light.
Ahmed al Ahmed disarms shooter
There is of course, the moving video of Ahmed al Ahmed, a father of two who happened to be at the beach when the shooting began. He immediately sprung into action, tackled one of the shooters and took away his gun. He was injured during the attack, and is now recovering. It has been reported that had he not stopped the shooter, there would have been more deaths. The story of this Muslim man and his allyship has inspired so many.
Reuven Morrison died a hero, also trying to disarm shooters
Ahmed was not the only one trying to stop the shooter. Reuven Morrison rushed at the two shooters, throwing bricks and other hard objects.
“If there was one way for him to go on this earth, it would be fighting a terrorist,” his daughter Sheina Gutnick told CBS News. “There was no other way he would be taken from us. He went down fighting, protecting the people he loved most.”
She says when she saw the video, she recognized him right away: “That’s him, that’s my dad, that’s my tatti, as I called him in Yiddish.”
Boris and Sofia Gurman fought one of the gunmen and died as heroes
Right before the attack started, Boris and Sofia Gurman, 68 and 61, tried to rush Naveed Akram and take his gun. They failed and were killed; they died holding each other. The two, who immigrated from Russia, were devoted to each other, and were about to celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary. Their heroism in the face of such darkness shouldn’t be forgotten.
Matilda Britvan’s aunt asks people to smile in her honor
Some of the words from the survivors and the families left behind have touched us deeply. Lina, 10-year-old Matilda’s aunt, urged everyone to look at the person next to you and “give them the biggest smile like Matilda always [gave] to us.” She went on to say there’s not a single photo of the little girl in a serious pose. She was always happy, always smiling.
Vladimir Kotlyar shares an important Hanukkah message
Jewish chaplain Vladimir Kotlyar was at the event with his 8-year-old son. When the gunmen opened fire, he lay down on top of the boy to try to protect him. Soon he felt the body of a fellow security guard fall on him; he tried to perform CPR on him and, when the shooting ended (he said he heard 50-60 rounds), tried to help others too.
Kotlyar showed Sky News his bloodied hands, but it was what he said after recounting all the horrors that has stayed with me: “I got these candles there,” he shared, showing a box with a menorah and Hanukkah candles in it. “I’m going to go home and light them up because we must light up and keep the show going — we are not afraid.”
At a vigil held in Sydney, community gathered to light the menorah and sing Hanukkah songs
At a vigil held in Sydney for the dead, a menorah was lit and Hebrew songs were sung.
Nothing will ever make this horrible attack easier to digest or understand, but one thing the Jewish community will always have is our resilience. Even in the darkest of times, there will always be helpers, there will always be bravery and we will always embrace our Jewish pride. So let us remember to smile big whenever we can, to be brave when we are able, and to light our menorahs and shine our Jewish light.
This Hanukkah, I, like so many of us, am lighting every menorah I can find in my house, letting them shine brightly through my kitchen window, filling darkness with light.
