Australian Man Had Expected To Die Tackling Bondi Beach Shooter

Ahmed al-Ahmed has received global praise for disarming one of the massacre's two gunmen, a move that resulted in getting shot himself.

The Australian man widely hailed as a hero for disarming one of the shooters in Sunday’s deadly attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach reportedly said that he fully expected to get killed tackling the gunman from behind — and that he would do it again to save people’s lives.

Ahmed al-Ahmed, a father of two and store owner from Sutherland, was meeting his cousin for coffee in Bondi that day when two gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah event at the famous beach. The cousin, Jozay Alkanj, told local outlets that the two hid behind cars when they saw “people were shooting very near to us.”

“He said, ‘I’m going to die — please see my family [and tell them] that I went down to save people’s lives,’” Alkanj said of his cousin, who then crept up behind one of the gunmen before tackling and disarming him. Al-Ahmed pointed the rifle at the shooter himself as the gunman ran to rejoin the other suspect, prompting the bystander to put the rifle down before he was shot twice in his arm.

“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,” al-Ahmed’s lawyer Sam Issa told The Sydney Morning Herald of his client, who is currently being treated at St. George Hospital. Issa described al-Ahmed as “riddled with bullets” and worries the 43-year-old will lose his arm.

Footage of al-Ahmed’s bravery quickly went viral, prompting a global outpouring of support that includes crowdfunding for his treatment and praise from leaders. New South Wales Premier Chris Minns posted a photo on social media of him speaking with al-Ahmed while sitting on the edge of his hospital bed.