Relatives of Muslim man who disarmed Sydney terrorist say Syria is ‘proud of him’

Relatives in Syria of Ahmed al-Ahmed, 43, the Muslim fruit vendor lauded for disarming one of the terrorists who attacked a Hanukkah event in Sydney, call him a hero and express their pride.

Ahmed left his hometown in Syria’s northwest province of Idlib nearly 20 years ago to seek work in Australia. His uncle, Mohammed al-Ahmed, recognized him from footage circulating online.

“We learned through social media. I called his father and he told me that it was Ahmed. Ahmed is a hero, we’re proud of him. Syria in general is proud of him,” the uncle tells Reuters.

The man said his nephew left Syria in 2006 after completing a degree at Aleppo University. He hasn’t been back since.

“Since he was young, he was gallant and a hero,” his uncle said, describing him as a happy and passionate person.

“He acted impulsively without thinking who the people were that were being killed, without knowing their religion, if they were Muslim or Christian or Jewish. That’s what made him jump up and carry out this heroic act.”

Ahmed, who now holds Australian citizenship and has two daughters, remains in a Sydney hospital with gunshot wounds from the terror attack, which killed 15 people and injured dozens.

A GoFundMe campaign set up for him has raised more than $1.5 million.

Back in Syria, the Ahmed family home remains in ruins from the country’s 14-year civil war. Piles of smashed cinderblocks ring the concrete carcass of the two-story house, whose walls are punctured by shelling.

“This is Ahmed’s father’s home. It got destroyed during the war. Bombing, bombing from planes, missiles – every type of weapon,” Ahmed’s cousin, who is also named Mohammad al-Ahmed, tells Reuters.

He said his cousin “was the reason that many innocent people who did nothing wrong were saved.”

“He will prove to the world that Muslims are peacemakers, not warmongers,” says Ahmed.