Anthony Albanese has written to Governor-General Sam Mostyn requesting a special honours list to commemorate heroic acts relating to the Bondi Beach terror attack.
Fronting media on Wednesday, the Prime Minister said it was important to honour those who made “extraordinary personal sacrifices in order to help their fellow Australians”.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has requested the creation of a special honours list for Bondi heroes. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman
“Today, I have written to the Governor-General requesting the creation of a special honours list in response to this horrific terrorist attack, for awards to be put in place as part of the Australian honours and awards system,” Mr Albanese told reporters at Parliament House.
“This would recognise those individuals nominated and recommended for a bravery or a meritorious award in response to the Bondi terrorist attack.
“The attack did show us the worst of humanity, hatred, anti-Semitism, violence.
“It also showed us the best of humanity, extraordinary acts of bravery and courage, acts of kindness for fellow Australians.
“These special honours lists have been used previously to recognise individuals for other significant events, like the Bali bombings and MH17, and these awards would be announced in 2026.”
Mr Albanese highlighted first responders, including off-duty police officers, who leapt into action.
There has been an outpouring of support for those who rushed to the scene to help the wounded or even help police as they tried to take down the alleged gunmen, as Ahmed al-Ahmed did.
Mr Ahmed, a Syrian-born man who emigrated to Australia in 2006, ran at one of the shooters, disarming him and forcing him to retreat
The act was captured on video and spread like wildfire across social media, earning Mr Ahmed international praise.
A GoFundMe has raised more than $2.5m for him, which he received in hospital last week.
Mr Albanese said nominations for the honours list would be reviewed by the independent secretariat that runs special awards systems.
“Recognition of people’s good deeds is a good thing,” he said.
“It’s not why people do it, but it’s what our nation should do.”
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