A man who survived the Bondi Beach attack has described the moment his best friend died a hero while trying to stop the alleged gunmen.
Reuven Morrison, who serves as an assistant at Bondi’s Wellington Street synagogue, put himself in harm’s way after meeting his friend Vladimir at the Hannukah event at Bondi Beach on Sunday.
An emotional Vladimir, who says he would have been caught up in the gunfire if he hadn’t needed to find parking, said of the shooting: ‘I saw everything and now my best friend is dead. He died in front of me.’
Vladimir, who is originally from the Soviet Union but has been an Australian since the 1970s, said he was returning from the Hannukah celebration to sort out his car when the shooting began.
‘I was leaving. I asked Reuven about what time to turn on the Chanukah lights and then I was walking away,’ he told the Daily Mail.
‘I’d walked about 50 metres when I heard the shots and I turned around and there was a Chinese lady and her child and I said “get down!” and maybe that’s what saved me too.
Pictured: Reuven Morrison, who died while trying to save people during the terror attack in Bondi on Sunday
Morrison’s best friend Vladimir told the Daily Mail that the synagogue assistant ‘died a hero trying to save his community’
‘People started running and I looked up and saw the guy shooting from the bridge above towards the Chanukah area.
‘Then some Australian guys not connected with the Chanukah celebration started saying “let’s do something” and started looking for sticks to attack the shooters.
‘I stood up and walked towards the guy on the bridge. He pointed his rifle at me and then waved his hand as if to say “stay away”.
‘I think he thought I wasn’t with the Chanukah event. But I am Jewish.
‘Then there was one detective over the other side who started firing at the shooter on the ground.
‘There was more firing and then Reuven got hit.
‘He was trying to get people to get down out of the way and then maybe disarm the shooter on the ground, he was walking towards him to fight him.
‘But then he was shot – hit in the kidneys, I think. I was there when he died.
The other hero from the terror attack, Ahmed al Ahmed (pictured), was filmed as he disarmed one of the alleged gunmen before being shot himself
NSW Police have revealed that the alleged gunmen were father and son
The father, aged 50, died as a result of gunshot wounds he suffered in a firefight with police. His son (pictured) was critically injured and taken to hospital under police guard
‘The ambulance took a long time to come.
‘He’s a hero. He died a hero trying to save his community and it cost him his life.
‘If only I didn’t leave earlier, he might be still alive.’
The hero who was filmed disarming one of the alleged gunmen has been revealed as Ahmed al Ahmed, 43, a father-of-two fruit shop owner from the Sutherland area in Sydney’s south.
He can be seen in the footage crouching behind a car before charging one of the attackers and taking his firearm from him.
Mr Ahmed then pointed the rifle at the alleged gunman, who backed away.
Ahmed has undergone surgery for bullet wounds to his arm and hand, with his cousin Mustafa telling 7News, ‘Still he is in hospital and we don’t know exactly what is going on, the doctor says he is OK.
‘We hope he is okay, he is a hero, 100 per cent he is a hero.
‘He has two shots, one in his arm and one in his hand, he has had to have an operation.’
A child is among at least 16 people who died in the attack, with 42 others injured.
A police constable and a probationary constable suffered gunshot wounds as multiple officers exchanged fire with the two alleged gunmen.
NSW Police have revealed that the alleged shooters are father and son.
One of them, aged 50, died at the scene as a result of his wounds.
The other, a 24-year-old, was taken to hospital under police guard.