Lifeguards link hands as they line the shoreline to observe three minutes of silence to pay their respects to the victims of last Sunday's shootings at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP Image via AP) BIANCA DE MARCHI / AP
Australian surf lifesavers lined the shore of Sydney's Bondi Beach and fell silent Saturday to honor the 15 people shot and killed when gunmen fired into crowds at a Jewish festival by the sea. Scores of rescuers stood by the water's edge along the entire length of the beach, six days after the two alleged assailants carried out one of the deadliest mass shootings in Australia's history.
The elder gunman, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, was shot and killed by police. His 24-year-old son Naveed survived and remains in hospital under police guard facing charges including terrorism and 15 murders.
Facing the ocean while wearing their red-and-yellow uniforms, the lifeguards observed three minutes of silence. Some cried or hugged each other at the morning ceremony, with a surf lifesaving helicopter hovering overhead, television images showed.
Volunteer surf lifesavers across the country, who number more than 200,000, were being asked to join the homage in solidarity with those affected by the Bondi attack before starting their morning patrols.
