By Alasdair Pal
SYDNEY, April 17 (Reuters) – Britain’s Prince Harry and wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, on Friday met survivors of December’s Bondi Beach shooting that left 15 dead, on the final day of their visit to Australia.
A father and son who police say were inspired by Islamic State are alleged to have opened fire on a Jewish festival on Sydney’s iconic beach last year, in Australia’s worst mass shooting in decades.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex spoke to several survivors including 40-year-old Elon Zizer, who survived after being shot numerous times while shielding his children.
“It’s an honour to meet the duke and duchess. It’s very beautiful that they’ve come and made an effort to meet us,” he said.
“It’s very special – it makes us feel heard.”
The Sussexes also met emergency workers who responded to the attack, as well as representatives of the Sydney Jewish Museum, which is opening an exhibition on the attacks.
The couple stepped down as working members of the British royal family and moved to the U.S. in 2020, citing a desire to be financially independent and to escape what they characterised as media intrusion into their private lives.
They last visited Australia in 2018 while still working royals, announcing Meghan’s first pregnancy hours after arriving in Sydney.
MIXED RECEPTION
The trip has divided public opinion in Australia, where Britain’s King Charles is the head of state, though a sizeable minority supports becoming a republic.
Harry and Meghan have received a warm reception at events across Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne on the four-day visit, but others have questioned the reasons for the trip, which local media have called a “pseudo-royal tour”.
In contrast to their previous visit, the Sussexes are also undertaking what their office called “private meetings and special projects” while in Australia.
While Harry met military veterans on Wednesday, Meghan filmed an episode of cookery show MasterChef Australia, where she was a guest judge.
She is also headlining a luxury wellness retreat in Sydney on Friday evening. Tickets for the event, which includes yoga, manifestation and sound healing, start from A$2,699 ($1,912) per person.
(Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Sydney; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
