Bondi Beach attack hero Ahmed al Ahmed pleads not guilty to assaulting father

44-year-old fruit seller received global plaudits for disarming a gunman during the mass terror shooting at a Hanukkah event; next hearing set for August

Ahmed al Ahmed, the Muslim fruit seller who rose to global fame for disarming a gunman in last year’s mass terror shooting at a Hanukkah event on Sydney’s Bondi Beach, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to assaulting his father.

Ahmed was hailed as a hero when viral video footage showed him intervening in the December 14 antisemitic attack by father and son Sajid and Naveed Akram, which killed 15 people. The 44-year-old ducked between parked cars as the shooting unfolded, grabbing one of the two gunmen and wresting away his weapon in an effort to stop the killing.

Facing court in the Sydney suburb of Bankstown on Wednesday, Ahmed denied charges of common assault and domestic stalking or intimidation, according to court documents provided to AFP. The next court hearing was set for August 12.

“It has been very difficult. It is a family situation that he never expected, one would never want to expect, and it must be very difficult for him,” his lawyer Mohamad Sakr told journalists outside court.

The attorney added, “There is one thing that must be upheld, and that is the presumption of innocence. He is a heroic man and his honesty and dignity should be maintained until these matters are determined.”

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Local media, including national broadcaster ABC, said Ahmed had been charged after allegedly assaulting his father in March. He was also charged with stalking, according to police.

Ahmed, who sustained gunshot wounds at Bondi Beach, received plaudits worldwide for his actions, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

He was later hailed at the Jewish communal event marking one week since the massacre, which his father attended. A crowdfunding effort on his behalf raised more than a million dollars in its first day.

Last month, his two brothers faced court in Sydney over allegations they had attempted to pressure Ahmed into handing over some of that money, local media said.

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