As the story of Hanukkah tells us, even in the darkest times flickers of light refuse to be extinguished. In the darkness which tried to engulf Australia on the first day of Hanukkah this year, tiny flames of heroism and hope flickered undimmed. Even the terrorists’ bullets couldn’t extinguish the light that some carried, even as it took their lives.
While the world rightly celebrates the courage of Sydney shopkeeper Ahmed al-Ahmed, his shining example is but one of the bright flames of bravery and hope that burst forth that dreadful day. As the Jews have for millennia, many of those Jewish Australians gathered at Bondi that day refused to go quietly into the dark night of anti-Semitic hatred.
Here are just some of the stories of those who ran toward danger for the sake of others.
In the very first moments of the massacre, heroic married couple Boris Gurman, 69, a retired mechanic, and wife Sofia Gurman, 61, an Australia Post worker, gave their lives trying to prevent it. As they ran and seized a rifle from the older terrorist, they likely became the very first killed.
Their brave actions couldn’t stop Sunday’s rampage which killed beloved rabbis, community workers, a retired policeman and a 10-year-old girl named Matilda […]
As more stories of death and survival emerged on Tuesday, dashcam footage of the Gurmans revealed their split second bravery in confronting the gunman as they walked along busy Campbell Parade at Bondi Beach.
Mr Gurman is seen tackling 50-year-old Sajid Akram to the ground and wrestling a long-arm rifle from the gunman as he got out of a Hyundai car near the footbridge where he and son Naveed Akram, 24, would go on to fire into the Hannukah festival crowd.
Mrs Gurman watched the scuffle from the footpath and for a moment it seemed as though her husband of nearly 35 years had the upper hand.
Unfortunately, as we all know, his bravery was in vain. But even in the face of death, love triumphed.
Drone footage released after the attack showed Mr Gurman lying motionless next to the Hyundai – which had an Islamic State flag draped over the front windscreen.
Mrs Gurman, who was to celebrate her 62nd birthday on Wednesday December 17, was lying next to him.
Mrs Gurman was forever frozen in the act of embracing her dying husband.
Their family on Tuesday said they were devastated by the loss but proud of the Russian-Jewish couple’s actions to try to prevent the attack.
“While nothing can lessen the pain of losing Boris and Sofia, we feel an overwhelming sense of pride in their bravery and selflessness. This encapsulates who Boris and Sofia were – people who instinctively and selflessly tried to help others.”
They were far from the only ones.
As the shock from the Bondi massacre gave way to frustration and anger on Tuesday, heroic acts of defiance and survival shone a light on the best of humanity at the worst of times.
Stories emerged of mothers leaping on their children to protect them from bullets. Men who could have run instead turned to their loved ones to shield them. Others, like the Gurmans, sprinted towards evil, throwing whatever they could – missiles, punches – to stop the gunmen.
Another who ran to danger to protect others was Reuven Morrison.
Melbourne-based businessman Reuven Morrison, 62, ran towards the elder gunman shortly after he was disarmed by bystander hero Ahmed al Ahmed, throwing bricks at the shooter. Mr Morrison paid for his courage with his life.
“He was screaming at the terrorist and protecting his community,’’ his daughter Sheina Gutnick told CBS news.
“If there is one way for him to go on this earth it would be fighting a terrorist. There is no other way he would be taken from us.”
Fathers ran to tackle the terrorists. Mothers instinctively protected children, even those who were strangers to them.
A five-month pregnant woman known as Jess, who was looking for her own son, came across a three-year-old girl out in the open as bullets flew through the air.
She ran to her and shielded the little girl with her body, telling her to stay still and calm and quiet.
“I’m just a mum and I did what mums do. I saw a little girl and she needed help and I tried to do what I could. I couldn’t help everyone,” Jess told Sky News.
From young mothers to the elderly, people died trying to protect others.
Ukraine-born Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman, 87, a grandfather of 11, had been trying to protect his wife Larisa when the gunfire rang out. “I think he was shot because he raised himself up to protect me,’’ Mrs Kleytman said.
Great grandfather Tibor Weitzen, a 78-year-old patriarch of the Chabad of Bondi community, died trying to shield family friend Edith Brutman, who also lost her life.
In an unspeakably horrifying twist, Mr Weitzen’s body was discovered by a first responder who is his grandson.
His grandson, Mendy Amzalak, a first responder, discovered his grandfather’s body at the scene. “I started treating people and then I came across his body.
“He had been shielding a long-time friend of his wife,” he said.
The woman he tried to shield was grandmother Edith Brutman. In her late 70s, Mrs Brutman made a rare outing as she struggled with mobility issues.
When the shooting started and Mrs Brutman struggled to move, Mr Weitzen tried to shield her from the bullets that claimed both of their lives […]
Mrs Brutman was a beloved member of the Jewish community and vice president of the B’nai B’rith (ADU) Alfred Dreyfus Unit – a group dedicated to combating prejudice and discrimination.
Remember their names, as we learn them: Rabbi Eli Schlanger, father of five including a newborn. Another Holocaust survivor, Marika Pogany. Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, father of four. French Jewish Dan Elkayam, 27, who only moved to Australia about a year ago. Former NSW policeman, photographer and rugby referee and team manager Peter Meagher. And 10-year-old Matilda, whose Ukrainian Jewish parents brought her older brother to Australia to escape the war.
Like the candles on the chanukiah, keep the light of their names burning in these darkest of times.
