The cousins, out for a coffee at Bondi Beach on what was a stunning afternoon, passed by the Hanukkah event and were offered food. They declined the offer, keen on some caffeine to see them through the weekend.
“We needed a coffee,” Alkanj said. “It was then just 10 minutes before this happened like that. It was very crazy, we went behind the cars, we were seeing that people were shooting very near to us.”
Jozay Alkanj, cousin of 43-year-old father-of-two Ahmed el Ahmed who has been hailed a hero.Credit: James Brickwood
More than one thousand people have raised more than $290,000 for Ahmed on the crowdfunding site GoFundMe set up by CarHub Australia.
Among the donors is US billionaire Bill Ackman, who donated $100,000. CarHub Australia donated $50,000.
Mostafa, Ahmed’s cousin, who did not provide a last name, said he had not slept since he attended St George Hospital on Sunday night. He said his cousin was undoubtedly a hero.
“Absolutely, he is a hero,” he said. “He would’ve lost his life to save other people.
“I hope everyone in Australia wishes [that everything goes well for] Ahmed and that he can get back to his family.”
The incredible footage from the scene at Bondi Beach shows one of the gunmen, dressed in a black shirt and white pants, holding a black bag and standing beside two bins next to the Campbell Parade car park as he fires into the crowd gathered on the lawn nearby.
Ahmed, dressed in a white or light blue shirt and black pants, moves towards the gunman through the car park, crouching behind a parked car as he creeps as close as he can to the shooter, while remaining out of sight.
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Once he is close enough, he pounces, wrapping his arms around the gunman and wrestling with him until he’s able to pry the rifle out of his hands. The gunman then falls backwards onto the ground as Ahmed picks up the rifle and aims it at him.
The shooter then backs away, walking towards the car park overpass, where the other shooter was still stationed.
Ahmed places the rifle against a tree and backs away. As the footage continues, another bystander can be seen chasing after the gunman, throwing something at him as he walks towards the bridge.
Other footage from the scene shows the gunman then rejoins the other assailant at the bridge. Having entered the line of fire at great personal risk to save lives, Ahmed was then shot twice.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns commended his bravery.
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“We have seen Australians today run towards danger in order to help others. These Australians are heroes and their bravery has saved lives,” Albanese said at a press conference.
In a separate press conference, Minns remarked on the “extraordinary acts of personal courage and bravery from individuals in our community”.
“I think it’s worth remembering that in all of this evil, in all of this sadness, there are still wonderful, brave Australians that are prepared to risk their lives to help a complete stranger.”
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