American theology student Leibel Lazaroff, 20, shot twice in Bondi Beach incident

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Leibel Lazaroff, 20, an American who studied scriptures in New York City, was among those critically injured in the deadly attack at Australia’s Bondi Beach after being shot twice.

The attack, which occurred on Sunday, targeted a Hanukkah celebration and left at least 15 people dead, with several others critically wounded.

Leibel Lazaroff’s early life, studies, and recent move to Australia

Lazaroff, the son of two Texas A&M Jewish leaders, grew up on the Texas A&M University campus, where his father serves as a Chabad rabbi. 

He recently spent a year in his mother’s native Brooklyn studying at a Crown Heights yeshiva and moved to Sydney about two months ago.

Yossi Lazaroff, the executive director of Chabad at Texas A&M, wrote on X on Sunday morning that his son, Rabbi Leibel Lazaroff, had been shot by the father-and-son duo who opened fire on the beach celebration.

The Lazaroffs founded the Rohr Chabad Jewish Student and Community Center at Texas A&M after arriving in College Station in 2007. 

According to his uncle, Zalman Lazaroff, he was shot in the abdomen and leg and remains in “critical but stable condition.”

“He still has shrapnel in his abdomen and right thigh, and is intubated and will need another surgery [Monday] to clean out the shrapnel. He lost a lot of blood,” the family was informed via a WhatsApp group chat.

Zalman described his nephew as a “popular, smart, and spunky kid” who embarked on the adventure of his life around the Jewish High Holidays in October.

“He’s only been there for two months,” Zalman said, describing Lazaroff as a “talented” pianist and one of nine children. “He’s an adventurous boy, and Australia was an adventure.”

Lazaroff’s aunt, Leah Loksen, a Crown Heights resident, said she told her excited nephew that living in Australia was “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” “He was so excited. He was thriving,” she said.

Family details Leibel Lazaroff’s injuries and recovery

Zalman Lazaroff explained that going abroad is typical for a Chabad-Lubavitch student of his nephew’s age. “All the students go for a one- or two-year program, like an exchange student,” Zalman said.

“He’s very special, a very capable and sociable young man,” he said of Leibel Lazaroff, noting that he enjoyed volunteering at events in Crown Heights and touched those around him with his “warmth.”

“He’s a young man committed to Jewishness,” his uncle added.

“He was there organizing and helping to create this very large, annual event,” Zalman said. “He was doing what his DNA is wired for, spreading Judaism.” The uncle described the horrific massacre as “an attack on Jews,” adding, “It’s not an attack on Israel or Zionism.”

“We live in very dangerous times,” Zalman said.

Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack leaves 15 dead, dozens injured

On Sunday, December 14, Leibel Lazaroff was at the beach when attackers, identified as 24-year-old Naveed Akram and his father, 50-year-old Sajid Akram, allegedly stormed a Hanukkah celebration armed with shotguns and a bolt-action rifle, killing at least 15 people and injuring another 40, including children.

The attack was the deadliest mass shooting in Australia in nearly 30 years, and the investigation remains ongoing.