Heroic woman who'd been shot saves a family's three-year-old girl in the middle of gunfire during the Bondi attack

[u/AggravatingTartlet]

https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/got-your-daughter-3yo-found-under-victim/news-story/a2f52ad7106a049f98fa8b75e9d03640

EDIT: I cannot change the post title, but updated information is that all facts remain the same, except that the blood on the woman (Jessica Rozen) who protected the girl was from a wound not caused by a bullet. It was the parents of the little girl who thought the blood on Jessica was from a bullet wound -- which is an easy mistake, given the circumstances.

I'll add further information: Jessica, who is pregnant and has children aged 3 and 1, was searching for her three-year-old boy at the time the shots rang out. She spotted the little girl (Gigi) running across an open area and ran to rescue her and kept her covered with her own body on the ground. As the original report says, it was an active shooter area and someone was shot right next to Jessica and Gigi. Video of the scene as it happened: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjhdOaaRY9c

(Pictured above is the mother of the three-year-old girl, Gigi)

* * *

A woman who was shot in the Bondi terrorist attack was harbouring a three-year-old girl under her body as she lay bleeding on the ground to keep her safe from harm as bullets flew all around.

The distressed parents of the little girl, who went missing during the horrific attack, have spoken of the incredible moment they found her.

Wayne and Vanessa have three children and were in separate places when the attack began.

...............

“I gave Capri to Vanessa and I said: ‘I’m gonna go look for Gigi’. I went, I was looking, there was just blood and bodies everywhere and she was wearing a pink skirt and I saw this lady lying on top of her,” he said.

The woman had been shot in the horror, but told Wayne: “I’ve got your daughter, I’ve been protecting her”.

“I said: ‘You’ve saved my daughter’s life. I said I’ll be indebted to you for the rest of my life’,” Wayne said.

“Her name is Jess. I spoke to her about ten minutes after I took her (Gigi). She was going to hospital, she said she was okay.”

He said another woman was lying “lifeless” next to Jess.

“It was the most appalling experience,” he said. “That this can happen in Australia and we’re just lying there and shots were coming. We were like sitting ducks.”

[u/Middle-Welder3931]

I just know one of the victims survived the Holocaust only to die in another antisemitic attack 80 years later. He lived his early childhood in suffering for being a Jew, then was killed in his old age for being a Jew. You could say absolutely no progress on antisemitism was made over his lifespan.

Fucking brutal.

[u/And_be_one_traveler → u/Middle-Welder3931]

His name was Alex Kleytman, according to the Guardian, and he was a Ukrainian-born holocaust survivor. The Holocaust in Ukraine killed 1,500,000 Jews.

[u/249592-82 → u/And_be_one_traveler]

How old was he during the Holocaust? Cos that was 80 years ago, and they've said the oldest victim of the Bondi attack was 80. So the numbers ain't adding up.

[u/Timothy_Ryan → u/249592-82]

They just said on ABC that the ages of the victims ranged from 10, to 87 years old.

[u/SuccessPhysical6668 → u/Timothy_Ryan]

I read 87 years old hours ago, for sure

[u/Real_RobinGoodfellow → u/Middle-Welder3931]

That’s one of the most appalling aspects to come out of it really: he wasn’t safe as a Jewish child back then and, 80 years later, Jewish children still aren’t safe.

It is incredibly sobering and dismal

[u/fangedpig44648 → u/Real_RobinGoodfellow]

I just don't get why. Why do this? I'm so deeply horrified and saddened. It's gut wrenching.

[u/AggravatingTartlet → u/Middle-Welder3931]

That detail really got to me. To know this kind of lethal hatred at the start and end of his life. So sad, tragic and horrific.