KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today extended his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims of the violent attack in Sydney and wished those injured a swift and full recovery.
“I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wish those injured a swift and full recovery,” he said in a Facebook message.
Anwar said he was deeply alarmed by the attack, which claimed innocent lives and left many others injured, and condemned the act in the strongest terms.
“There can be no justification for violence directed at civilians, still less for attacks that single people out on the basis of race or religion, at any time or in any place. Such acts have no basis in any faith or belief,” he said.
The prime minister said Malaysia stood in firm solidarity with the people and government of Australia at this difficult time and fully supported all efforts to ensure those responsible were identified and brought to justice in accordance with the law.
Meanwhile, police in the state of New South Wales (NSW) said this morning that 16 people have been confirmed dead after the shooting.
A police statement said that 14 people died at the scene and two others died in hospital. The deceased range in age from 10 to 87 years old and includes one of the attackers.
Another 40 people were being treated in hospital for their injuries as of this morning, five of whom were in critical condition.
NSW Police Force commissioner Mal Lanyon told a press conference this morning that the two alleged shooters were a 50-year-old man and his 24-year-old son.
The 50-year-old, who was killed at the scene, was a licensed firearm holder with six guns legally in his possession, Lanyon said.
The shooting occurred at around 6.47 pm local time yesterday when the two men opened fire on a crowd of at least 1,000 people who gathered at the beach for an event celebrating the first day of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.
Lanyon, who last night officially declared the shooting as a terrorist attack, said today that investigations into motives behind the attack are ongoing.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the attack was an act of "pure evil" and that Australia would do whatever is necessary to stamp out antisemitism.
"It is a scourge and we'll eradicate it together," he said.
It marks Australia's most deadly mass shooting since 35 people were killed at Port Arthur in the island state of Tasmania in 1996, which prompted fundamental changes to Australia's gun ownership laws.
