Prince Harry, Meghan Markle meet with survivors of Bondi Beach Hanukkah shooting in Sydney
Markle embraced Jessica Chapnik Kahn, who shielded her daughter during the deadly attack
Britain’s Prince Harry, and his wife Meghan Markle speak with Elon Zizer, Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack survivor, during a meeting at the Bondi Surf Bathers’ Life Saving Club in Sydney, April 17, 2026. Artifacts from the aftermath of the shooting lie on the table behind Zizer. Photo by Jonathan Brady / Pool / AFP via Getty Images
(JTA) — Meghan Markle appeared to fight back tears as she listened to Jessica Chapnik Kahn describe shielding her young daughter as gunmen fired on the Hanukkah celebration they were attending in Sydney.
Chapnik Kahn told Markle about her experience during the shooting as Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, visited Bondi Beach as part of the couple’s trip to Australia.
Markle embraced Chapnik Kahn, whose daughter Shemi is less than a year older than her own daughter Lilibet.
The couple also spoke with first responders from the Bondi Surf Bathers’ Life Saving Club; Elon Zizer, who was shot six times in the attack; and representatives from the Sydney Jewish Museum, which is preparing to open an exhibit about the shooting and its aftermath.
Among the artifacts to be displayed, Chapnik Kahn recently shared on Instagram, is a jelly donut that her daughter saved after not being able to eat it during the party. Fifteen people were killed in the shooting, which targeted a Chabad Hanukkah event and has prompted new efforts to curb antisemitism in Australia.
This article originally appeared on JTA.org.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
