The Premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns, and the state's Police Commissioner, Mal Lanyon, have delivered a robust defence of the police response to the deadly terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, praising the courage of officers who confronted gunmen armed with high-powered rifles using only their service pistols.
Leaders Hail Police Bravery Under Fire
During a press conference on Tuesday, Commissioner Lanyon expressed immense pride in the officers involved. "I am incredibly proud of our police officers. They were confronted by two men armed with long arms. Our police at the scene were armed with pistols," he stated. Premier Minns strongly supported this view, emphasising the disparity in weaponry and the officers' resolve.
"The NSW police acted with bravery and integrity," Minns declared. "They engaged the gunmen on the footbridge with handguns. They didn’t take a backwards step. The offenders had long-range rifles and NSW police officers were responsible for killing one of them, and shooting the other one and, as a result, saving many, many people’s lives." The attack, which occurred on Sunday, resulted in the deaths of 15 people.
Questions on Resources and Response Time
The leaders faced questioning about the level of police resources allocated to the 'Chanukka by the Sea' Jewish festival held at Bondi prior to the attack, and the precise response time once the shooting began. Both Minns and Lanyon declined to provide specific numbers, citing an ongoing investigation.
Commissioner Lanyon explained that policing deployments are based on assessed threats. "We base our policing response on the threat that exists at the time. A lot of work is done between ourselves and the Jewish community," he said. He confirmed there were police patrols tasked to both the general Bondi Beach area and the festival, stating, "We had an appropriate policing response to ensure police were moving through there." He added that the response would have been different had specific intelligence indicated a threat.
Graphic Rebuttal to Criticism
Premier Minns offered a stark rebuttal to any implication that police hesitated, pointing to the injuries sustained by two officers. "There are two officers in critical care in NSW hospitals at the moment. They weren’t shot in the back as they were running away. They were shot in the front," he said, describing the detail as necessary to counter false narratives.
He passionately defended the force, noting one of the wounded was a probationary constable with only months of service. "I think this rush to conclusions before all the facts are known, in my view, is disrespectful to their actions on Sunday," Minns asserted. The police operation, known as Operation Shelter, was established after the October 2023 Hamas attacks in Israel and involves static and roving patrols at Jewish sites across Sydney's eastern suburbs.
The alleged attackers, Naveed Akram and his father Sajid, were reportedly inspired by ISIS. The investigation into the attack and the police response continues.
