Opera house lit up and Australian flags fly at half-mast following Bondi stabbing spree

Australia’s most iconic building has lit up with a black ribbon to mourn and honour the victims of the shopping centre massacre.

TOPSHOT - A black ribbon is projected onto the Sydney Opera House on April 15, 2024, as a mark of respect for the victims of the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping mall attack. A 40-year-old knifeman with mental illness roamed the packed shopping centre on April 13, killing six people and seriously wounding a dozen others. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP)

Australia’s most iconic architectural landmark has lit up with a solemn black ribbon to reflect the country’s heartbreak following Saturday’s Bondi massacre.

The knife rampage at Bondi Junction Westfield in Sydney’s eastern suburbs left six innocent people dead and more in hospital.

As night fell on Monday, the Sydney Opera House, the central marker of Sydney’s global city status and Australia’s most beloved piece of architecture, transformed with a black ribbon projected onto its legendary curved white sails.

Earlier in the day, flags were flown at half-mast in honour of the victims.

A black ribbon is projected onto the Sydney Opera House on Monday night, two days after the deadly Bondi massacre. Picture: David Gray / AFP

On Sunday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced all Australian government buildings, including at Parliament House in Canberra would lower their flags as a mark of “mourning and respect”.

Detectives are still working to piece together evidence regarding the horrific stabbing rampage at a shopping centre in Sydney’s east that left seven dead, including assailant Joel Cauchi.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, alongside other political leaders, paid tribute to the victims of stabbing rampage in Bondi on Saturday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

The victims have been identified as Yixuan Cheng, Pikria Darchia, Dawn Singleton, Faraz Tahir, Jade Young and Ashlee Good.

Eight injured victims remain in hospital with stab wounds, including one in a critical condition, and two in a serious but stable condition. The remaining five, including a nine-month old infant, are in a stable condition.

Cauchi was shot dead by a lone police officer. The 40-year-old man has battled with mental health issues since he was a teenager.

Originally published as Opera house lit up and Australian flags fly at half-mast following Bondi stabbing spree