‘Don’t forget her’: Heartbroken parents of 10yo Bondi shooting victim speak at vigil as tributes to victims continue

The heartbroken family of a young girl killed in the Bondi shooting has broken down at a memorial for the “beautiful girl” – urging people “not to forget” about her. Matilda Britvan had just turned 10 when she was killed in Sunday’s horrific massacre at the Chanukah By The Sea event at Bondi Beach. She is the youngest of the 16 victims – which include one of the alleged gunmen, Sajid Akram. His son Naveed, 24, emerged from a coma in hospital on Tuesday. Another 22 injured in the alleged shooting are being treated in various hospitals across Sydney. Heartbreaking scenes emerged on Tuesday night as Matilda’s family attended a vigil at Bondi Pavilion, where father, Michael, told the crowd he wanted them to know his daughter was a “beautiful” person”. “Her name was Matilda because she was our first Australian,” he said, per reports in The Australian. Matilda’s mother spoke of the “monster” who killed her daughter and opened fire on a child. “It wasn’t just a bullet from a spray. It wasn’t an accident – it was a bullet fired on her,” she said. Chilling footage of a smiling Matilda in the moments before the shooting was revealed on Tuesday, capturing the beaming child getting her face painted, petting animals and playing at Archer Park in Bondi. Her language teacher Irina Goodhew said the child’s memory would “live on in our hearts” while organising a fundraiser. A former student at Harmony Russian School of Sydney in Bellevue Hill, Matilda was taken to Sydney Children’s Hospital after being injured in the shooting but could not be saved. At least 12 of the 15 innocent people who were killed in Sunday’s massacre have been identified. They include Marika Pogany, Tibor Weitzen, Dan Elkayam, Reuven Morrison, Peter Meagher, Alexander Kleytman and rabbis Eli Schlanger and Yaakov Levitan. Boris and Sofia Gurman – two Russian-speaking Jewish immigrants who first confronted one of the alleged shooters – were also named among the deceased and recognised for slowing the shooter’s advance and seizing one of his weapons. In footage widely shared on social media, the couple can be seen wrestling him to the ground in the very first minutes of the attack. Mr and Ms Gurman were approaching their 35th wedding anniversary but were reported missing shortly after the shooting. “Boris and Sofia were longtime Bondi locals who loved their community and the life they had built there,” the Gurman family said in a statement. “While nothing can lessen the pain of this loss, we feel immense pride in their courage and humanity,” the statement said. Edith Brutman, the vicepresident of B’nai B’rith NSW – the state’s branch of the Jewish community service organisation – was also confirmed to have died in the shooting. The organisation confirmed her death to members on Tuesday. “She was a gracious woman and a devoted member of B’nai B’rith NSW,” the organisation said in a statement, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. “We are all horrified at the tragic events that took place at the Chanukah celebration at Bondi Beach on Sunday night.” 24 people remain in hospital, according to NSW Health. Two patients are in a stable condition at Prince of Wales Hospital. One patient is in a critical but stable condition, and one patient is in a stable condition at St George Hospital. One patient is in a stable condition at Sydney Eye Hospital. Two patients are in a critical condition, two patients are in a critical but stable condition and two patients are stable at St Vincent’s Hospital. One patient is in a critical condition, two patients are in a critical but stable condition and three patients are stable at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Two patients are in a stable condition at Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick. Three patients are in a stable condition at Royal North Shore Hospital. Two patients are in a stable condition at Liverpool Hospital.