Bondi Beach hero Ahmed al-Ahmed recalled the moments he stopped the gunman in his first interview.
According to The Guardian, Ahmed who disarmed one of the Bondi gunmen before being shot five times, says he knows his bravery saved many lives but is sad for those who were killed in the attack.
In an interview with CBS News, Ahmed said he “didn’t worry about anything” except for the lives he could save as he disarmed Sajid Akram on 14 December. The act was caught on camera and shared around the world.
He said, “My target was just to take the gun from him, and to stop him from killing a human being’s life and not killing innocent people. I know I saved lots, but I feel sorry for the lost.”
Akram was shot dead by police during the attack on a Hanukah event where 15 people were killed. His son, Naveed Akram, was wounded by police, and he was later charged with 59 offences.
Ahmed told CBS, “I jumped in his back, hit him. I hold him with my right hand and start saying a word, you know, like to warn him, ‘drop your gun, stop doing what you’re doing.’ And emotionally, I’m doing something, which is I feel something, a power in my body, my brain…”
He added that he did not want to see people killed, screaming, begging, asking for help in front of him.
Footage from the attack shows Ahmed leaping from behind a parked car to grapple with Sajid Akram, whose gun was knocked to the ground in the struggle.
He picked it up and pointed it at the gunman, who retreated to his son on a nearby footbridge.
Ahmed was shot five times shortly after wrestling with Akram. He is recovering well after going through three rounds of surgery in a Sydney hospital
