Bondi Beach Attack : Islam is a religion of peace, Al-Ahmed’s family defines why he risked his life

The Bondi Beach terror attack and the response of the Muslim Ahmed al-Ahmed, who endangered his life to save innocent people without regard to their religion, once again proved that Islam is a religion of peace and Muslims are peaceful.

When Ahmed al-Ahmed tackled and took a gun from an alleged shooter at Bondi Beach, he was simply thinking that he “couldn’t bear to see people dying”, his cousin revealed.

Ahmed al-Ahmed has been praised widely for his bravery and selflessness.

Ahmed al Ahmed, 43, an Australian Muslim citizen of Syrian origin and a fruit shop owner, father of two, tackled and wrestled a rifle from the hands of one of the Bondi Beach shooters without concern for his own life and suffered serious injury as a result of that.

Currently, Ahmed al Ahmed is recovering in the St George Hospital in Sydney from injuries sustained during the chaos. He showed his resolve to perform the act of bravery again if he had to.

A cousin of Al-Ahmed, Mustafa al-Asaad, told the Al Araby television network that Al-Ahmed intervened after witnessing people being shot and could not bear to see further loss of life.

“It was a humanitarian act,” Mr al-Asaad said. “It was a matter of conscience. He believed he could stop that person from killing people.”

According to his cousin, al-Ahmed later said he felt he had been given courage by God and did not regret his actions, adding that he would act the same way again if necessary.

His parents, Mohamed Fateh al-Ahmed and Malakeh Hasan al-Ahmed, told ABC News that their son was shot four or five times in the shoulder during the incident. They said he had previously served in the police force and had a strong sense of duty to protect others.

“My son is a hero,” his father said. “He wasn’t thinking about who the people were or where they came from. He was only thinking about saving lives.”

The couple had only arrived in Sydney from Syria months prior and had been separated from their son since he came to Australia in 2006.

Lubaba Alhmidi AlKahil, the media director for the Australians for Syria Association, visited al-Ahmed on Monday afternoon to deliver a tray of food and a bouquet of flowers.

“What he did, he really is a superhero,” she said. AlKahil hadn’t met al-Ahmed before the tragedy but said the community was very proud of him.

For AlKahil, the profound tragedy also brought a sense of fear.

She said the incident had also highlighted concerns within the Muslim community about being unfairly associated with violence following such attacks.

“Our religion Islam is a religion of peace and we are very peaceful people. This proves that.”