Australia to Launch Gun Buyback in November in Wake of Bondi Attack, PM Announces

Australia will begin a nationwide gun buyback program

Australia will begin a nationwide gun buyback program in November, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed on Tuesday, a direct response to the stabbing rampage at Sydney's Bondi Junction shopping center last year that left six people dead.

The initiative, which will offer financial compensation to owners surrendering certain types of firearms, forms part of a broader push to tighten the country's already strict gun laws. Albanese said the buyback targets high-capacity and semi-automatic weapons that have no legitimate sporting or recreational use, emphasizing that the move aims to prevent similar tragedies.

“The Bondi attack was a wake-up call,” Albanese told reporters in Canberra, referencing the April 2023 incident in which a lone attacker killed five women and a male security guard before being fatally shot by police. “We owe it to those families to ensure that no more lives are lost to preventable violence.”

The buyback scheme, expected to cost an estimated

The buyback scheme, expected to cost an estimated $100 million, will be administered by state and territory governments, with details on eligible firearms and payment rates to be finalized in the coming weeks. Critics, however, have questioned the effectiveness of focusing on gun ownership when the Bondi attacker used a knife, not a firearm.

Supporters argue the measure is a prudent step given the rise of far-right extremism and online radicalization, citing intelligence reports that suggest an increasing number of Australians are seeking to acquire weapons legally. The government has also pledged to strengthen background checks and introduce a national register for firearm license holders.

Albanese stressed that the program is not about punishing law-abiding owners but about community safety. “This is about being proactive, not reactive,” he said. “We cannot wait for the next tragedy to act.”

The buyback is set to run for 12

The buyback is set to run for 12 months, with a mandatory amnesty period during which owners can surrender unregistered firearms without penalty. Officials hope the initiative will remove up to 200,000 weapons from circulation, building on the success of a similar buyback following the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.