Heroic man and couple who died trying to stop Bondi Beach terrorists praised for their courage
A 62‑year‑old grandfather has captured the public’s admiration for a heroic act seen on video: he rushed at the Bondi Beach gunmen and hurled a brick at them, just before he was fatally shot in what has become Australia’s most tragic mass shooting in years.
Reuven Morrison, a former Soviet immigrant, was among several unarmed bystanders who tried to stop an ISIS‑inspired father‑son duo that opened fire during a crowded Hanukkah celebration on the afternoon of Sunday, killing 15 people.
Recorded footage shows him leaping forward in a last‑ditch attempt to halt the carnage immediately after the attackers unleashed a torrent of gunfire.
“He managed to throw bricks,” his daughter, Sheina Gutnick, told CBS News of her dad, a proud Jew celebrating Hanukkah.
“He was screaming at the terrorist, and protecting his community, he was shot dead,” she said.
“If there was one way for him to go on this Earth, it would be fighting a terrorist. There was no other way he would be taken from us. He went down fighting, protecting the people he loved most.”
“Everyone [who] knew him knew the incredible man that was just too big for this world. The light that he added, his absolute immense and endless generosity, his sense of humor. He was just the most incredible person,” the daughter added.
Morrison, who had fled the Soviet Union and settled in Australia, was among the casualties of the brutal attack.
“My father was murdered. In cold blood. Shot for being Jewish,” his daughter said.
“Ripped from his wife, daughter, son‑in‑law, and dear grandchildren. Leaving a gaping, heaving wound of sorrow.”
He joined a group of brave individuals who attempted to subdue the shooters during the ten‑minute massacre.
Boris Gurman, 69, and his 61‑year‑old wife, Sofia, were captured on video trying to wrestle one of the gunmen before they too were shot dead.
Another man, Ahmed al Ahmed—a Muslim father of two—eventually caught one of the gunmen in a surprise move from behind, disarming him, and survived despite being hit many times.
Morrison’s daughter has since called out the Australian government for failing to tackle antisemitism sufficiently before the tragedy.
“We have been begging and begging for action and it has fallen on deaf ears,” she said.
“They’ve had the warning signs for so long.”
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