Dan El-Kayam, 27, a Frenchman from the Paris region, was one of 15 people killed in the attack on the Jewish Hanukkah festival at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday.
Mr El-Kayam holds a master’s degree in computer engineering and had been working in Sydney since December 2024.
Former principal of the École Supereur de Génie Informatics (ESGI), an engineering school in Paris. Kamal Hennou described his former student as a “gifted” person who “enlightened those around him with his kindness and goodness.”
“We are all devastated,” Hennow told Euronews.
The teacher praised El-Kayam’s commitment to his studies, adding that a “great career” is opening up for him when he graduates from the institution in 2022.
“He was a colleague to our students whose promising future was tragically shattered by a despicable act of anti-Semitic hatred and violence. His memory will continue to be honored at our school,” Hennow said.
A moment of silence was held in his memory at ESGI on Monday morning.
He said Mr El-Kayam was a soccer fan who had traveled around the world for several years and had been working in Sydney as a network engineer since 2024. LinkedIn profile.
According to media reports, he tried to protect the girl during the Bondi attack before he was killed.
El-Kayam’s death was announced Sunday night by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrault.
“I am deeply saddened to learn that my compatriot Dan El-Kayam was among the victims of the despicable terrorist attack on a Jewish family gathered at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on the first day of Hanukkah,” Barot wrote in a post on X.
“This despicable act is an example of the terrible suffering inflicted on Jewish families.”
French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his “deep sadness” and said the “full solidarity of our people” rested with El-Kayam’s family.
Details begin to emerge
Australian authorities have classified the shootings as a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community, but have not yet released an official list of victims.
But a day after Australia’s deadliest mass shooting, the identities of several victims have been revealed through social media posts, news reports and official announcements. Website The Bondi Beach branch of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement hosted Sunday’s Hanukkah event.
Harmony Russian School in Sydney facebook It posted that 10-year-old Matilda, a “former student at our school,” died “in hospital from gunshot wounds.”
Another victim of the shooting was Rabbi Eli Schlanger, 41, an assistant rabbi at Chabad-Lubavitch in Bondi, according to Chabad.org. Schlanger was on stage leading a Hanukkah ceremony when two gunmen opened fire.
The website said he was an “invaluable leader in the community” and “a vocal advocate of protecting the Jewish community from the rise of anti-Semitism.”
Earlier this year, Schlanger wrote to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, urging him to “act decisively” against terrorism and anti-Semitism, the website said.
About 1,000 people gathered at Bondi Beach on Sunday for Hanukkah by the Sea, an annual event celebrating the first night of Hanukkah, the eight-day Jewish festival of lights.
The father and son attackers opened fire on the crowd, killing 15 people and injuring at least 40, including three children.
One of the attackers was shot dead by police, and the other remains in critical condition.
Counter-terrorism investigation begins in France
France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT) announced on Monday that it had launched an investigation into the anti-Semitic shooting at Bondi Beach, alongside an investigation by Australian authorities.
The prosecutor’s office said the investigation involved “homicides related to acts of terrorism.”
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez called on the governor to “intensify the presence” of law enforcement officers to protect Jewish places of worship across France.
Days earlier, he had already called for “the utmost vigilance” to be maintained ahead of Christian Christmas and Jewish Hanukkah celebrations, and for “intensified security arrangements” for services and gatherings.
The minister highlighted the “very high level of terrorist threat” and “recent events (fires, damage, vandalism) at some places of worship.”
In early December, Núñez called on governors to strengthen security at Christmas markets, which have been the target of deadly attacks in recent years, particularly in Germany in 2016 and 2024, and in Strasbourg in 2018.
