One gunman was also killed and another wounded; two police officers among the injured taken to hospital

Amid the horror of the shooting, one video has emerged showing incredible bravery – a bystander rushing one of the gunmen from behind to wrestle the firearm off him.

Praised a hero, he is being identified by some media as a 43-year-old fruit shop owner from the Sutherland Shire.

Australia recorded 1,654 anti-Jewish incidents in year to September – three times higher than any annual total before Gaza war

• Bondi beach shooting – live updates

• What we know so far about the Bondi beach attack

Shortly after the mass shooting targeting Australia’s Jewish community on Sunday, Rabbi Levi Wolff of Central Sydney Synagogue told reporters that “the inevitable has happened now”.

Wolff was speaking in Bondi, close to where two men armed with powerful rifles or shotguns had just attacked an event celebrating Hanukah, the Jewish religious festival. At least 12 people were killed, including one alleged gunman, and dozens were injured in Australia’s deadliest mass shooting in almost three decades.

The beachside attack on Australia’s Jews, targeting a Hanukah gathering, reflects growing bigotry and political violence

The shock and horror that have rippled out from Bondi Beach across the world are immense. At least 11 people died at a place packed with families. A further 29 individuals suffered serious injuries. For Sunday evening’s shootings to occur in one of the most idyllic and quintessentially Australian of locations, at one of the most joyous times in the Jewish calendar, only deepens the fear and anguish felt throughout the Jewish community, across Australia and more broadly.

Authorities were quick to identify the attack as terrorism, targeting Jews as they gathered to celebrate the beginning of Hanukah on the beach. The two gunmen – one now dead, another critically injured as of Sunday night – fired on the crowds from a bridge. Parents ran with their children in their arms; elderly people struggled to flee. A car containing improvised explosive devices was found nearby and late on Sunday police were still searching for a possible third offender. Without the extraordinary courage of the man who single-handedly wrestled a gun from one attacker at the beach, and the swift response of others, this violence would probably have been still more devastating.

Long before the shocking killings in Sydney, the threat of antisemitic violence was often left unchallenged. That must change

Like all Australians, Bondi isn’t just a place to me, it lives in my heart as a symbol of who we are. As a child I spent many Sundays on the beach at North Bondi life-savers as a “nipper”, and as a former mayor of Waverley council and a local councillor for more than a decade, I have walked its concrete ramparts thousands of times, in all its seasons.

In a few weeks, visitors from every corner of the globe will gather there to celebrate Christmas. For locals, it is a place of peace and play. For the small Jewish community, it is also a place where festivals are marked openly and proudly.

Eyewitnesses describe acts of bravery from bystanders and police officers after gunmen opened fire on people enjoying a warm summer evening

• Bondi beach shooting: live updates

The killing went on so long, those fleeing had time to scream “they’re re-loading” as they scrambled for any place of safety they could find.

Those who could not were pitilessly gunned down.

Further 29 people in hospital, after attack on Sydney beach where Hanukah event was taking place

• Bondi beach terror attack: full report

• What we know so far about the Bondi beach attack

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, just released a statement. He said:

The scenes in Bondi are shocking and distressing. Police and emergency responders are on the ground working to save lives. My thoughts are with every person affected.

I just have spoken to the AFP Commissioner and the NSW Premier. We are working with NSW Police and will provide further updates as more information is confirmed.

I urge people in the vicinity to follow information from the NSW Police.

Video shows the man rushing one of the alleged gunmen who shot dozens of people on Sunday evening in Australia

• Bondi beach shooting live updates

• Bondi terror attack: full report

• What we know so far about the shooting in Australia

A bystander tackled and wrestled a gun from one of the two alleged gunman during the Bondi beach mass shooting in which at least 12 people were killed, footage shows.

Video of the scene shows the alleged gunman standing on a footpath between a grassy area and parking lot holding a long-barrelled weapon and firing into the distance.