President Donald Trump praised Ahmed al Ahmed, the Australian civilian immigrant who “frontally attacked” and disarmed one of the terrorists responsible for killing 15 victims and wounding 40 others at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday.
Addressing the antisemitic terrorist attack in Australia on Sunday, Trump described Ahmed as a “very, very brave person,” who “went and attacked frontally one of the shooters and saved a lot of lives.”
“So, [a] very brave person who’s right now in the hospital, pretty seriously wounded,” Trump said. “Great respect to that man that did that.”
Axios reported that 15 people were killed and 40 others were injured during Sunday’s terrorist attack at Bondi Beach. One of the terrorists was also killed. The outlet noted that the mass shooting took place at roughly 6:45 p.m during a large gathering for a Jewish Hanukkah celebration. The mass shooting has been labeled a terrorist attack and a targeted attack against the Jewish community.
READ MORE: Video: Nat’l Guard soldier shot in DC ‘got up from bed,’ Trump says
A video shared on X, formerly Twitter, shows Ahmed confronting one of the two terrorists during Sunday’s mass shooting terrorist attack. In the video, Ahmed can be seen tackling and disarming the terrorist.
Sam Issa, Ahmed’s immigration lawyer, told The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday that despite being “riddled with bullets” after confronting one of the terrorists in Australia, Ahmed would “do it again.”
“He doesn’t regret what he did. He said he’d do it again. But the pain has started to take a toll on him,” Issa said. “He’s not well at all. He’s riddled with bullets. Our hero is struggling at the moment.”
“Ahmed’s a humble man, he’s not interested in coverage, he just did what he was compelled to do as a human being on that day,” Issa added. “He gets that gratitude from being in Australia. This is his way of conveying his gratitude for staying in Australia, for being granted citizenship.”
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Ahmed moved from Syria to Australia in 2006 and officially became a citizen in 2022. The outlet noted that Ahmed has a 5-year-old daughter and a 6-year-old daughter.
“He has really appreciated this community, and he felt that as a member of the community, he had to act that way and contribute,” Issa told The Sydney Morning Herald.