SYDNEY  –  The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have spoken to survivors and emergency responders from the Bondi Beach shooting, on the fourth day of their Australian visit. Volunteer lifeguards and community leaders met the couple at the beach in Sydney where 15 people were killed and 40 injured at a Hannukah event in December.  The couple have been visiting eastern Australian cities, including Canberra and Melbourne.

Prince Harry and Meghan arrived at Bondi Surf Bathers’ Life Saving Club on Friday morning, where they spoke to Jessica Chapnik Khan and Elon Zizer, who both survived the shootings while shielding their children. Bondi lifeguards, who were hailed as heroes for protecting members of the public during the attack, also met the pair. Representatives of the Sydney Jewish Museum, which is opening an exhibition dedicated to the attack, also attended, describing Prince Harry and Meghan’s visit as “really special”. The couple were later welcomed by fans who had lined the steps of the Sydney Opera House, where they boarded a boat for a sailing event hosted by Invictus Australia.

 The couple met veteran Joel Vanderzwan at the harbour, who presented them with customised flip-flops featuring the messages ‘G’day Hazza’ and ‘G’day Megs’.  After accepting the gifts, Harry joked that he normally receives “budgie smugglers” from Invictus Australia.  The couple then headed out onto the water on a vessel designed to be wheelchair-accessible, so injured veterans could board. In 2018, Prince Harry announced that Australia would host the Invictus Games during his royal tour, a competition he founded in 2014 for wounded military veterans.  It is the couple’s first trip to Australia since that 2018 tour. Michael Hartung, chief executive of Invictus Australia, described Harry and Meghan’s return to Sydney Harbour as a “full-circle moment”.

The couple are no longer working royals and have been visiting the country in a private capacity.