Israeli Ambassador to Australia, Amir Maimon, visited Ahmed al Ahmed, who tackled one of the terrorists who carried out the deadly antisemitic attack on Australia’s Bondi Beach during the holiday of Hanukkah, the Israeli Embassy in Australia said on Tuesday, according to JNS.
New South Wales Premier Chris Minns joined the meeting.
Maimon “expressed deep appreciation for Ahmed’s extraordinary bravery. By confronting the terrorist as he opened fire on children, women and men, Ahmed put the lives of others before his own. A true hero,” the embassy said in a post on social media.
Ahmed was wounded while intervening in the antisemitic terrorist attack on a Hanukkah gathering in the popular beach town in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. He was among dozens who suffered gunshot wounds in the attack, which left 15 people dead.
The Syrian-born Muslim, who became an Australian citizen five years ago, told CBS News in an exclusive interview earlier this week that his only goal was to save innocent lives.
“I couldn’t handle it - to hear kids, and the women, and oldest and men, screaming and asking for help,” he said.
Ahmed said he saw no one else attempting to stop the massacre, so he hid behind parked cars and waited for the right moment to act.
“My soul, my mind, my everything asked me to go and defend innocent life,” the convenience store owner said. “I didn’t think about it.”
He tackled the terrorist from behind, shouting at him to drop the weapon. “I don’t want to see people killed in front of me,” he said.
Ahmed was shot five times but managed to disarm the attacker. “Everything in my heart and brain worked just to save people’s lives,” he said.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently visited Ahmed in the hospital to commend his bravery.
He later received over A$2.5 million in donations from tens of thousands of people worldwide.
More than 43,000 people donated to the fundraiser, including billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who contributed A$99,999 and shared the campaign on his X account.