Members of the Jewish community attend special prayers for the victims of a shooting at Bondi Beach, during a vigil at the Chabad of Bondi in Sydney on Monday — AFP SYDNEY, Dec 15 (Reuters): Australia vowed stricter gun laws on Monday as it began mourning victims of its worst mass shooting in almost 30 years, in which police accused a father-and-son duo of killing 15 people at a Jewish celebration at Sydney's famed Bondi Beach.
The incident has raised questions whether Australia's gun laws, among the toughest in the world, need overhaul, with police saying the older suspect had held a firearms license since 2015, along with six registered weapons.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his cabinet agreed to strengthen gun laws and work on a national firearms register to tackle aspects such as the number of weapons permitted by gun licences, and how long the latter are valid.
"People's circumstances can change," he had told reporters before the cabinet met. "People can be radicalised over a period of time. Licences should not be in perpetuity."
Of the two gunmen, the 50-year-old father was killed at the scene, taking the tally of dead to 16, while his 24-year-old son was in critical condition in hospital, police told a press conference.
The 40 people taken to hospital after the attack included two police officers in serious but stable condition, they added. The victims were aged between 10 and 87.
Police did not release the suspects' names. Security officials said one was known to authorities but had not been deemed an immediate threat.
"We are very much working through the background of both persons. At this stage, we know very little about them," New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told reporters.
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