'A matter of conscience' Heroic bystander's family on why he risked his life

When Ahmed al-Ahmed tackled and wrested a gun from an alleged shooter at Bondi beach, he was simply thinking that he "couldn't bear to see people dying", his cousin says.

- Caitlin Cassidy

Ahmed remained in a critical but stable condition yesterday at St George hospital in Sydney.

Since the attack, the 43-year-old father of two young girls has been catapulted to international fame and been hailed as a hero by the Australian prime minister, the New South Wales premier and the US president.

Anthony Albanese singled out Ahmed at a press conference yesterday, paying tribute to his actions as an example of "Australians coming together".

The prime minister said: "Ahmed al-Ahmed... took the gun off that perpetrator at great risk to himself and suffered serious injury as a result of that, and is currently going through operations today in hospital." The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, visited Ahmed in hospital and posted on Instagram praising the "real-life hero".

Minns said: "Last night, his incredible bravery no doubt saved countless lives when he disarmed a terrorist at enormous personal risk. There is no doubt that more lives would have been lost if not for [Ahmed's] selfless courage." At least 16 people, including one of the alleged gunmen, were killed in the mass shooting during a Hanukah celebration on Sunday evening.

Extraordinary footage of the scene shows Ahmed rushing towards one of the shooters, leaping on to him and wrestling the gun from his hands.