After initially taking cover, she saw two children stranded in the open beside their injured parents and moved toward them despite the repeated gunfire.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
A 14-year-old girl heroically shielded two younger children and sustained wounds during during a terrorist attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach,
Chaya Dadon was attending the annual event when two gunmen opened fire on the crowd.
After initially taking cover, she saw two children stranded in the open beside their injured parents and moved toward them despite the ongoing gunfire.
“I knew in that moment, I felt like Hashem was sitting right next to me,” she said in an interview with Reuters. “He was whispering into my ear, ‘This is your mission: go save those kids.’”
Dadon pulled the children away from danger and used her body to protect them. During the attack, she was shot in the thigh but continued shielding the children and reciting the Shema, a Jewish prayer said several times a day and when in grave danger.
“I knew I got shot, but I wasn’t even worried. I channeled all that energy that I had into strength, and I made sure that I knew I had to be there for those kids,” she said.
Police said the Islamic State-inspired assault was carried out by Sajid Akram, 50, and his 24-year-old son, Naveed. Sajid was killed by police at the scene, while Naveed was arrested and charged with 59 offenses, including murder and terrorism-related crimes.
Dadon’s father later located her and took her for medical treatment. He told her afterward that she had been holding both children, one in each arm, when he reached her. “If I could give up my life saving these children, that’s what I was going to do,” Dadon said.
She was hospitalized for four days at Sydney Children’s Hospital and released on Thursday. Now using crutches, which she decorated with stickers honoring some of the victims, Dadon said she hopes to reconnect with the children she protected.
Authorities and community leaders continued to mark the tragedy throughout the week. Despite public attention on her actions, Dadon rejected being singled out. “I don’t feel like I’m a hero. I feel like everyone was a hero in that situation,” she said, adding that she has attended the celebration for years and that it is usually a joyful event.
She said the trauma would ultimately strengthen the Jewish community, even if that is difficult to see now.
The post 14-year-old girl rescued younger children even as she was shot during the Bondi Beach terror attack appeared first on World Israel News.