Shooting in Australia 2025 | Statistics & Facts

Shooting Incidents in Australia 2025

Australia has maintained one of the world’s strictest firearm regulatory frameworks since the landmark reforms following the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. Despite these comprehensive gun control measures, shooting incidents in Australia 2025 have captured national attention, particularly with the devastating Bondi Beach shooting on December 14, 2025, which marked the deadliest mass shooting in the country since Port Arthur. This terrorist attack at a Hanukkah celebration resulted in 16 fatalities including one perpetrator, with 42 people injured, shocking a nation that had long prided itself on effective gun control.

The landscape of firearm ownership in Australia has evolved significantly over nearly three decades since the National Firearms Agreement was implemented. While the country continues to record remarkably low gun-related homicide rates compared to international standards, with only 31 firearm murders between July 2023 and June 2024 (a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 people), the number of registered firearms has paradoxically increased to over 4 million—representing a 25% increase since 1996. This growth occurs alongside rising firearm license numbers, with New South Wales alone recording 260,000 gun licenses in 2025, up from 180,663 in 2001.

Key Shooting Stats & Facts in Australia 2025

Data Source: Australian Institute of Criminology National Homicide Monitoring Program 2023-24; The Australia Institute Gun Control Report January 2025; Wikipedia Gun Laws of Australia; NSW Police Firearms Data; Queensland Police Service Weapons Licensing

The data reveals a complex picture of firearm incidents in Australia 2025 where strict regulations coexist with growing gun ownership. The Bondi Beach terrorist attack represented a dramatic departure from Australia’s recent history of minimal mass shooting events, with authorities confirming the perpetrators—a father and son identified as 50-year-old Sajid Akram and 24-year-old Naveed Akram—specifically targeted the Jewish community during a Hanukkah celebration attended by approximately 1,000 people. The older gunman, who held a valid recreational gun license for a decade and legally owned six registered firearms, demonstrates how licensed individuals can still pose threats despite comprehensive background checks and genuine reason requirements.

Queensland’s struggle with illicit firearms highlights emerging challenges, with over 3,000 firearms reported stolen in the past five years and more than 2,000 still unaccounted for as of 2025. The state’s response through Operation Whiskey Firestorm and the permanent implementation of Jack’s Law in mid-2025 showcases proactive enforcement measures. Under Jack’s Law, police conducted 116,287 wanding scans using handheld metal detectors in public places without requiring warrants, resulting in 2,800 criminal charges and the seizure of 1,126 weapons. The proliferation of 3D-printed firearms adds another dimension to law enforcement challenges, with Queensland currently lacking criminalization of downloading or producing illicit firearm blueprints, unlike New South Wales and Tasmania.

Firearm Homicide Statistics in Australia 2025

Data Source: Australian Institute of Criminology Homicide in Australia 2023-24 Statistical Report No. 52; Australian Bureau of Statistics Recorded Crime Victims 2024; The World Data Murder Rate in Australia 2025

Australia’s firearm homicide statistics for 2025 demonstrate the effectiveness of the nation’s gun control framework, with only 31 gun-related murders recorded between July 2023 and June 2024, translating to an exceptionally low rate of 0.09 deaths per 100,000 population. This positions Australia among the safest developed nations globally, dramatically lower than the United States’ firearm homicide rate and comparable to other strict gun control jurisdictions. However, the total homicide incidents increased to 262 in 2023-24, marking a rise of 30 incidents from the previous year’s 232 incidents, indicating that while firearms are less commonly used in Australian homicides, overall lethal violence shows concerning upward movement.

The broader context reveals that weapons featured in 54% of all homicides recorded in 2023-24, with 219+ victims killed using various weapons. Notably, knives or sharp instruments comprised approximately 24% of all homicides (98+ victims), making stabbing the most common weapon-involved method and significantly exceeding firearm use in frequency. The data underscores that firearms represent only 12% of weapon-involved homicide incidents in the 2023-24 period, demonstrating how Australia’s strict gun laws have successfully limited firearm access for criminal purposes. Meanwhile, approximately 46% of homicides involved no weapons, with offenders using physical force including strangulation and beating, highlighting that lethal violence persists through various means regardless of weapon availability.

NSW Shooting Incidents in Australia 2025

Data Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research 2024; CNN Australia Gun Laws Report December 2025; NBC News Bondi Beach Coverage; Australian Bureau of Statistics Recorded Crime 2024; Wikipedia 2025 Bondi Beach Shooting

New South Wales experienced a shocking spike in murder cases during 2024, recording 85 homicide victims—the state’s highest annual total since 2014’s 93 murders and representing a dramatic 47% increase from 2023’s 58 murders. The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research attributed this unprecedented surge to an unusually high concentration of multiple-victim murder events, with 8 incidents involving 2 or more victims accounting for 22 deaths total. Half of these mass casualty events were domestic violence-related, while the Bondi Junction Westfield stabbing attack in April 2024 alone accounted for 6 victims, demonstrating how single incidents can significantly skew annual statistics and highlighting the broader challenge of preventing mass casualty violence beyond just firearm-related events.

The December 14, 2025 Bondi Beach terrorist shooting stands as the most devastating shooting incident in Australia since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, claiming 15 civilian lives plus the death of one perpetrator, with 42 people injured—some critically. The attack targeted a Hanukkah celebration called “Chanukah by the Sea” at Archer Park beside the iconic Bondi Beach, where approximately 1,000 members of Sydney’s Jewish community had gathered to mark the first day of the holiday. Victims ranged in age from 10-year-old Matilda Britvan to an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, and included Rabbi Eli Schlanger (assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi with a wife and five children), Rabbi Yaakov Levitan (secretary of Sydney Beth Din), and citizens from France, Slovakia, and Israel. The heroic intervention of 43-year-old Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Syrian-Australian fruit shop owner, prevented further casualties when he tackled and disarmed one of the gunmen despite being shot twice himself, with his actions praised by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and earning international recognition.

Queensland Firearm Enforcement in Australia 2025

Data Source: Queensland Police Service Weapons Licensing; Wikipedia Gun Laws of Australia; The Australia Institute Report January 2025; Australian Institute of Criminology 2024; The Conversation Weapons on Australian Streets September 2025

Queensland’s firearm enforcement landscape in 2025 reveals both the scale of legal gun ownership and emerging challenges with illegal weapons. The state maintains 1,076,140 registered firearms—the second-highest total in Australia behind only New South Wales—with over 200,000 active gun licenses issued as of 2025, representing substantial growth from approximately 150,000 licenses in 2010. This 33% increase over 15 years reflects Queensland’s significant rural and regional population where firearms serve legitimate purposes for primary production, pest control, and recreational shooting. The state’s relatively lenient 10-year license renewal period (compared to 3-5 years in most other jurisdictions) and availability of junior licenses from age 11 for supervised use demonstrate a regulatory approach balancing access with safety requirements.

However, Queensland faces a serious black market gun crisis that came to prominence in early 2025, with over 3,000 firearms reported stolen in the previous five years and more than 2,000 of these weapons still unaccounted for and presumably circulating in criminal networks. Police responded aggressively during 2024-25 by revoking 870 firearm licenses due to disqualifying factors including domestic violence incidents and mental health concerns, showing proactive efforts to remove firearms from high-risk individuals. The state’s Operation Whiskey Firestorm represents a concentrated crackdown on illicit firearm ownership, complemented by the permanent implementation of Jack’s Law in mid-2025, which grants police unprecedented powers to use handheld metal detection scanners (“wanding”) in all public places without warrants or individual consent, requiring only senior officer approval. Between April 2023 and June 2025, this program conducted 116,287 scans, resulting in 3,080 arrests on 5,597 charges and the confiscation of 1,126 weapons from public spaces.

Firearm Ownership Trends in Australia 2025

Data Source: The Australia Institute Gun Control in Australia Report January 2025; The Conversation What’s Behind Rise in Gun Ownership August 2025; SBS News Gun Ownership Rising September 2025; Australian Gun Safety Alliance Media Release January 2025

Firearm ownership trends in Australia 2025 present a paradox where the absolute number of registered guns has grown substantially while per-capita ownership rates tell a more complex story. The nation now has over 4 million registered firearms, representing a 25% increase from the approximately 3 million firearms estimated before the 1996 Port Arthur reforms. However, Australia’s population has grown even more dramatically from around 18 million in 1996 to over 27 million in 2025—a 50% increase—meaning that gun ownership per capita has actually declined despite the absolute number rising. This growth in firearms occurs alongside increased licensing, with nearly one million firearm licenses issued across states and territories, though licensing rates remain far below historical levels when considering population growth.

The distribution and concentration of firearm ownership in 2025 reveals significant patterns, with the average license holder owning more than 4 guns, and extreme cases including two individuals in suburban Sydney who each own over 300 firearms. This concentration is particularly notable given that public polling shows three in four Australians support limits on the number of firearms an individual can possess, yet only Western Australia has implemented such caps. Firearms are not confined to rural areas as commonly assumed—one-third of all guns in New South Wales are located in the urban centers of Sydney, Newcastle, and Wollongong, mirroring general population distribution. The demographic composition of gun owners appears to be evolving, with gun clubs and limited research suggesting that women and youth represent growing segments in what has traditionally been a white, older, male-dominated activity, though reliable data remains scarce in this area.

Gun Law Reforms Proposed in Australia 2025

Data Source: NPR How Australia Announced Strict New Gun Laws December 2025; CNN Australia’s Gun Laws Tougher Controls December 2025; Home Affairs National Firearms Register; Wikipedia Gun Laws of Australia December 2025; ITV News Bondi Beach Shooting Gun Laws

In the immediate aftermath of the Bondi Beach massacre, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese convened the National Cabinet on December 16, 2025, securing agreement from state and territory leaders to pursue comprehensive gun law reforms despite Australia already having some of the world’s strictest firearm regulations. The proposed measures represent the most significant overhaul of gun legislation since the landmark 1996 National Firearms Agreement that followed the Port Arthur tragedy. Key proposals include restricting firearm licenses to Australian citizens only (currently permanent residents and some visa holders can qualify), implementing limits on the number and types of firearms an individual can own (currently only Western Australia has such caps), and requiring more frequent license renewals with enhanced suitability checks beyond the current 3-10 year periods that vary by jurisdiction.

The reform package emphasizes closing technological loopholes and strengthening enforcement mechanisms that have emerged as vulnerabilities in the nearly 30-year-old framework. Tougher import restrictions on firearms and related equipment would specifically target 3D printing technology, novel manufacturing methods, and high-capacity ammunition magazines that weren’t envisioned when the original laws were drafted. The criminalization of downloading or producing 3D-printed firearm blueprints would be extended nationally, addressing the current gap where New South Wales and Tasmania prohibit this but Queensland does not. The National Firearms Register, which commenced implementation in July 2024 with an expected completion by mid-2028, would provide law enforcement with near real-time access to a centralized database linking all firearms, owners, and licenses across jurisdictions—fulfilling an outstanding commitment from the original 1996 reforms. Additionally, the use of enhanced criminal intelligence in the licensing process would allow authorities to consider broader risk factors beyond just criminal convictions when assessing applications.

Antisemitic Incidents Context in Australia 2025

Data Source: Executive Council of Australian Jewry Report December 2025; CNN Bondi Attack What We Know December 2025; NBC News Live Updates December 2025; NPR Coverage December 2025; Wikipedia 2025 Bondi Beach Shooting

The Bondi Beach shooting occurred within a broader context of dramatically elevated antisemitic incidents in Australia throughout 2024 and 2025, with the Executive Council of Australian Jewry documenting 1,654 anti-Jewish incidents between October 2024 and September 2025—representing almost five times the average annual number recorded before the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023. While this 2024-25 figure shows a 19% decline from the previous year’s record 2,062 incidents, it still represents an historically unprecedented level of antisemitic activity, with the past year featuring the highest number of serious incidents including arson attacks on synagogues, schools, and other Jewish institutions. This surge in hostility has profoundly affected Australia’s Jewish community of approximately 117,000 people (just 0.43% of the nation’s 27 million population), with Sydney and Melbourne serving as the two major hubs of Jewish life in the country.

The terrorism threat environment prompted the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) to raise the national terrorism threat level from “possible” to “probable” in August 2024, indicating a 50% likelihood of a terrorist act occurring, a warning that tragically materialized with the Bondi attack. Prime Minister Albanese confirmed that the gunmen were inspired by Islamic State ideology, with police discovering two homemade Islamic State flags in the vehicle belonging to 24-year-old Naveed Arham, the younger suspect who remains in critical condition. The father and son had traveled to the Philippines in November 2025, with the purpose of this trip and whom they met remaining under active investigation by authorities. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the attack and controversially blamed the Albanese government for “pouring fuel on this antisemitic fire” due to policies including Australia’s recognition of Palestine in September 2024, accusations that intensified already tense relations between the Australian government and some Jewish community leaders who have criticized what they perceive as inadequate official response to rising antisemitism.

Mass Shooting Historical Context in Australia 2025

Data Source: Wikipedia Port Arthur Massacre; Wikipedia 2025 Bondi Beach Shooting; Australian Institute of Criminology Statistical Reports; The Conversation Weapons Reality Check September 2025; CNN International Comparisons December 2025; NPR Port Arthur Legacy December 2025

The Bondi Beach shooting on December 14, 2025 shattered Australia’s remarkable 29-year period without a mass shooting following the Port Arthur massacre on April 28, 1996, which claimed 35 lives and prompted then-Prime Minister John Howard’s government to implement sweeping gun control reforms within just two weeks. The Port Arthur tragedy, where a lone gunman armed with semiautomatic weapons attacked a café and tourist site in Tasmania, became a catalyst for change that fundamentally reshaped Australia’s approach to firearms, with the National Firearms Agreement introducing uniform laws across all states and territories, banning semiautomatic and pump-action long guns, requiring genuine reasons for ownership (explicitly excluding self-defense), and establishing comprehensive licensing and registration systems that remain among the world’s strictest.

The effectiveness of these reforms is evident in Australia’s sustained low gun death rate of approximately 0.88 per 100,000 (based on 2018 data), positioning the nation among the safest countries globally and dramatically lower than the United States’ rate of 5.76 per 100,000—over six times higher. Australia’s overall homicide rate peaked at 1.88 per 100,000 in 1992-93 but has declined to historic lows, with the current rate of 0.98 per 100,000 in 2023-24 representing roughly half the early 1990s level despite a slight recent uptick. The gun buyback programs in 1996-1997, federally funded and supplemented by state amnesty programs, successfully collected and destroyed over one million firearms, possibly representing one-third of the national stock at that time, dramatically reducing the weapons available for potential misuse. This track record made Australia’s gun control framework an international model that countries like New Zealand followed after the 2019 Christchurch massacre, where an Australian-born right-wing extremist killed 51 people at two mosques, prompting swift legislative action mirroring Australia’s 1996 response.

Public Safety Perceptions vs Reality in Australia 2025

Data Source: Report of Government Services 2025; The Conversation Weapons Perceptions vs Reality September 2025; NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics 2025; Australian Institute of Criminology 2023-24; ABC News Coverage Analysis

A significant disconnect exists between public perceptions of weapon-related violence and the statistical reality in Australia 2025, with many Australians believing violent crime is increasing despite data showing several categories remaining stable or declining over the past decade. The federal Report of Government Services indicates that most Australians feel safe in their houses at night and in their neighborhoods during the day, but confidence drops significantly regarding safety in public spaces after dark, despite stranger homicides representing only 15% of killings and just 20% occurring in public areas. Conversely, Australians tend to underestimate the threat from known individuals, even though domestic homicides account for 34% of killings and acquaintance homicides represent 26%, with 60% of homicides occurring at residential locations—meaning people face greater danger from those they know in private spaces than from strangers in public.

Specific weapon-related concerns often diverge from actual trends, particularly regarding knife crime, where New South Wales court data shows the rate of knife involvement in assault and robbery incidents has steadily declined from 2005 to 2025. Australian Bureau of Statistics data for recorded crime victims demonstrates that the number of robberies involving both firearms and knives has declined between 2010-2022, with weapons used in 49% of robberies in 2022, but firearms involved in only 5% and knives in 23%. Yet public concern about weapons on streets has intensified, partly driven by high-profile incidents like the April 2024 Bondi Junction Westfield stabbing that killed 6 people and the December 2025 Bondi Beach shooting that killed 15 civilians, demonstrating how single mass casualty events can dramatically shape public perception and drive policy debates despite representing statistical anomalies rather than broader trends. This perception-reality gap influences political responses, with states implementing measures like expanded wanding powers, knife possession restrictions, and calls for tighter gun controls that respond to public anxiety even when underlying crime rates don’t necessarily justify such heightened concern.

State-by-State Firearm Comparison in Australia 2025

Data Source: Wikipedia Gun Laws of Australia December 2025; The Australia Institute January 2025 Report; NSW Police Public Data; Queensland Police Service; Australian Gun Safety Alliance State Rankings

The state-by-state comparison of firearm regulation and transparency reveals substantial variation despite the National Firearms Agreement establishing baseline standards across Australia. New South Wales leads not only in absolute firearm numbers with 1,125,553 registered guns and 260,000 licenses, but also in data transparency, being the only jurisdiction that publishes comprehensive public statistics about firearm ownership, licensing demographics, and enforcement activities. This transparency allows researchers, policymakers, and journalists to analyze trends and assess policy effectiveness, making NSW’s approach a model for evidence-based regulation. Queensland follows as the second-largest firearms state with 1,076,140 registered guns and over 200,000 licenses, distinguishing itself through relatively generous 10-year license renewal periods and the permanent implementation of controversial Jack’s Law wanding powers that other states are now considering after the program yielded 1,126 weapons seized from 116,287 scans between April 2023 and June 2025.

Western Australia stands alone among Australian jurisdictions by imposing limits on the number of firearms an individual can own, addressing concerns about excessive stockpiling that emerged from cases like the two Sydney residents who each own over 300 guns—a situation that remains legal in NSW despite 75% of Australians supporting ownership caps according to polling. Victoria has implemented Firearm Prohibition Orders since 2018, allowing police to ban individuals from possessing firearms based on criminal associations or gang affiliation, even without convictions, representing a proactive rather than reactive regulatory approach. Tasmania has joined NSW in criminalizing the download or production of 3D-printed firearm blueprints, addressing technological loopholes that Queensland has yet to close despite emerging concerns about homemade weapons. The Northern Territory and South Australia rank among the weakest for gun control according to the Australian Gun Safety Alliance’s 2025 assessment, with the Northern Territory historically exempting longarm registrations (though this has changed) and South Australia combining weak baseline regulations with 10-year renewal periods that minimize oversight opportunities, demonstrating how decentralized implementation of national standards can create significant jurisdictional variation in practical outcomes.

Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.

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