54 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleLana LamSydney
Geller FamilyA 90-year-old woman who was shot during Australia’s Bondi Beach attack last December has died in a Sydney hospital, almost a year after the mass fatal shootings.
Eva Geller was one of dozens who were seriously injured after two gunmen opened fire on a Jewish event in Bondi Beach on 14 December. Fifteen people were killed including a ten-year-old girl.
Rabbi Aron Moss from the Nefesh Synagogue said Geller, who escaped the Holocaust as a child, had remained as “positive, loving, and strong throughout her life, right until the end”.
Australian leader Anthony Albanese has expressed his condolences, saying the country would never forget those who “continue to carry the pain” of last year’s attacks.
The attack last December was Australia’s worst mass shooting in almost three decades and prompted sweeping gun law reforms and a crackdown on hate speech.
One of the gunmen, Sajid Akram, 50, was killed by police at the scene. His son Naveed Akram was arrested and charged with 15 counts of murder, 40 charges of attempted murder and one count of committing a terrorist act. He remains before the courts.
Police have not provided any detail on possible further charges as a result of Geller’s death.
On Friday, Rabbi Moss confirmed that Geller – who celebrated her 90th birthday earlier this year – had passed away last on Thursday night.
“She escaped the Holocaust as a child, eventually coming to Australia, and built a beautiful family,” he said.
Her injuries from the shootings meant regular hospital treatment.
“Ever since being shot at the Bondi attack she’d been in and out of hospital, always wanting to come home. She was told she will never walk again but miraculously and with incredible determination she did walk again,” said Rabbi Moss.
Geller had “came to shul (Yiddish for synagogue) this past High Holidays with an incredible show of strength,” he added.
New South Wales police said it was aware the woman had died overnight and “are now awaiting further advice and are working with the office of the Coroner”.
