Australian Ambassador Dave Sharma (C) joins hosts embassy staff at Tel Aviv's Sarona Marke
Australian Ambassador Dave Sharma (C) joins hosts embassy staff at Tel Aviv's Sarona MarkeAustralian Embassy

Words of condemnation and support continue to pour in from foreign leaders, following the deadly shooting spree by Arab terrorists in central Tel Aviv on Wednesday night.

But one senior foreign diplomat in Israel felt words were not enough.

On Thursday morning, Australian Ambassador to Israel Dave Sharma announced that he and his entire staff would be having lunch at the Sarona Market, at the site of the attack which claimed the lives of four innocent Israeli civilians.

Speaking to Arutz Sheva, Ambassador Sharma said he and his staff had been particularly effected by the attack at the popular tourist hotspot, which was packed with customers and visitors despite last night's attack.

"Last night's terrorist attack at Sarona Market was felt deeply by the Australian Embassy," he said. "It's a place we have all spent many happy hours with family and friends, so seeing the tragedy unfold last night was profoundly shocking.

"We came here to have lunch today to show the people of Israel that we feel your pain, mourn your loss, and stand alongside you as you confront such terror."

Ambassador Sharma also expressed his admiration for the stoic Israeli response to continued terrorist assaults.

"Israelis are tough and resilient people, and we see this here at Sarona today," he said.

"The mood is sad, but people are determined to continue living their lives and not giving in to terror. We in Australia applaud and admire this resolve. And we are showing our support for this spirit by coming here today."

Sharma posted pictures of the Embassy's visit to Twitter, and said the attack at the Max Brenner chocolate store reminded him of the deadly shooting in Sydney at the Lindt Cafe - which was also carried out by an Islamist terrorist.

Israeli leaders also flocked to the site in shows of support (including Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, President Reuven Rivlin, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, opposition head Yitzhak Herzog and others) but Sharma appears to be the only foreign diplomat to have made such a similar public stand - earning him widespread praise from Israelis and Jews worldwide on social media.