On the evening of Dec. 14, 2025, two shooters (reportedly a father-son duo) opened fire on a Hanukkah event on Sydney's Bondi Beach — killing 15, and injuring dozens more in what officials called a targeted attack on Sydney's Jewish community. Australian police said on Dec. 16, "early indications point to a terrorist attack inspired by Islamic State."
Soon after, authentic footage from multiple angles appeared online of a man in a white shirt tackling and disarming one of the shooters before turning the gun on the shooter, who eventually ran in the opposite direction.
Officials such as Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese, Governor General of Australia Sam Mostyn and the premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns, visited the man who tackled the shooter — Ahmed al-Ahmed — in a hospital, where he received care for bullet wounds he sustained when the other shooter fired on him. "There is no doubt that more lives would have been lost if not for Ahmed's selfless courage," Minns wrote on Instagram.
While global leaders honored his "bravery" and thousands of people raised millions of dollars to support al-Ahmed, conflicting claims emerged regarding his religious identity. For example, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly first said he was "a Jewish hero" before he later said al-Ahmed was Muslim, while some political activists such as Laura Loomer — a self-described "proud Islamophobe" — claimed he might actually be "Coptic Christian" (archived).
Dozens of news outlets, such as The Associated Press, Reuters, Aljazeera and The Jerusalem Post, all referred to al-Ahmed as Muslim.
We looked into the claim, and found that while it is not possible at this time for us to get a definitive statement from al-Ahmed saying he is Muslim, video evidence of him and his family repeatedly invoking "Allah," combined with a number of other contextual facts, provides clear evidence al-Ahmed is Muslim.
Throughout multiple videos, al-Ahmed, his parents and his cousins repeatedly invoked the name of God in Islam — "Allah." His immigration lawyer confirmed both he and his parents were immigrants from Syria and his mother is hijabi, as seen in videos captured by multiple news outlets outside the hospital. One of al-Ahmed's uncles in his hometown in Syria explicitly stated to Agence France-Presse (AFP) (bold type added for emphasis): "He is from Syria and he is a Muslim, and he had no motivation for doing this other than heroism and bravery." Another cousin in Syria said to Reuters, "He will prove to the world that Muslims are peacemakers, not warmongers." Additionally, al-Ahmed and his father, Mohamed al-Ahmed, and other family members have names of Muslim origin.
While people who are not practicing Muslims may, for example, use language rooted in the Quran or have Muslim names, the sum total known facts surrounding al-Ahmed clearly show he is Muslim. Below, we break down each of these elements.
First, Turkish news media service Anadolu Agency published a video of al-Ahmed from his hospital bed on Dec. 15, 2025, that provides perhaps the most obvious evidence al-Ahmed is Muslim. He said (translations by Anadolu Agency):
I appreciate the efforts of everyone. May Allah reward you and grant you well-being. God willing we will return to you with joy. Thank you for your efforts. Abdullah, Ahmed, Alaa and Bilal. Thank you to everyone. Through Allah, I went through a very difficult phase, only Allah knows it. Praise be to Allah for everything and may Allah reward you for everything. I ask my mother, the apple of my eye, to pray for me. Pray for me, my mother. May Allah grant you a long life. God willing, it will be a minor injury. Hajj Ghassan, thank you. May Allah grant you a long life. I thank you for your efforts. I do not know what to say to you. You are in my heart. Pray for me that Allah eases our situation and delivers us from this hardship. Send my regards to Bashar and tell him to take care of himself. And my regards to Wajd. May Allah grant him continued good health.
Other outlets, including Aljazeera and The Guardian, later published the same video.
In al-Ahmed's repeated invoking of "Allah," he used phrases such as "inshAllah" (meaning "God willing"), "Alhamdulillah" (meaning "praise be to God"), etc. More than simply invoking "Allah," these specific words and phrases have deep Quranic and Islamic significance. For example, "Alhamdulillah" (ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّٰهِ) appears in the first verse of Surah al-Fatiha, the opening chapter of the Quran.
While people from Arabic-speaking or Islamic cultures may, of course, use the same words in a more casual way, al-Ahmed's tone and repeated invocation of "Allah" and his asking his mother to pray for him shows an intentional use of the words in a religious sense, not purely cultural.
Second, his parents — who reportedly arrived from Syria to Australia only two months before the incident — appeared in a video taken by multiple outlets outside the hospital. His mother wore hijab (covering worn by Muslim women). While women from other faiths may also choose to wear hijab, combined with the other contextual facts (such as their use of Quranic language), it's clear she is a Muslim hijabi.
(Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
In a video clip taken outside of the hospital, his mother also repeatedly used the same words and phrases, invoking "Allah" (beginning at minute 0:45; translation by CBS News):
I learned he was involved in an incident and that he was in hospital. You know how a mother feels when she hears that her son is involved in an incident. Then when I learned the details, I was very proud that my son was helping people and saving lives. Allah will not hurt him. Thank God, he only received bullets in the hand and shoulder. Allah will not hurt him because he was doing good.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) spoke with members of al-Ahmed's family in Nayrab, his hometown in Syria. Mohammed al-Ahmed, reportedly al-Ahmed's uncle, said in the videoed interview (at minute 0:40; translation by AFP), "He is from Syria and he is a Muslim, and he had no motivation for doing this other than heroism and bravery."
Mohammed al-Ahmed also spoke to Reuters, and another family member in Nayrab, also named Mohammed al-Ahmed, told Reuters in a video interview (at minute 00:21): "We were so proud of the act that our Ahmed did and thank God he was the reason that many innocent people who did nothing wrong were saved. Of course he will prove to the world that Muslims are peacemakers, not warmongers."
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Dec. 15 that Sam Issa, al-Ahmed's lawyer, confirmed he and his family were refugees from Syria. The article describes al-Ahmad as "a Muslim" who arrived in Australia in 2006 from Syria before becoming an Australian citizen in 2022, but it's unclear whether Issa explicitly provided the information regarding his religion.
Lastly, al-Ahmed and his family members' names have Muslim roots. While not proof of al-Ahmed's religious background on its own merit, this fact matters given that dozens of people online claimed al-Ahmed was Christian.
In sum ...
It's important to note the depth of religious and cultural overlap in Islam. As a global religion with ancient roots, the personal and philosophical aspects of Islam are not isolated from family and societal patterns; rather, they are deeply intertwined. Al-Ahmed and his family's language and choice of wording, clothing, names, country of origin and more paint the picture of al-Ahmed's religious background, not merely his personal religious beliefs.