SYDNEY: A shark killed a man Tuesday at eastern Australia’s popular Byron Bay despite a beach goer’s brave rescue attempt, police said.
Beachgoer Mark Hickey swam 15-20 meters into the water at Clarkes Beach to retrieve the severely wounded victim, Police Inspector Bobbie Cullen said.
He received medical treatment on the beach but did not survive, Cullen said.
“A gentleman who was on the beach went out and located the gentleman and pulled him in,” Cullen told reporters. “Absolutely it is (an extraordinary act of bravery) and we can only thank him for his efforts.”
Hickey, a 52-year-old lawyer on vacation at Byron Bay, told Ten Network television news that he saw the shark and its bloodied victim and swam out to try to rescue the man as the shark attacked again.
“I went out there and, I don’t know, I just thought I’ve got to get this guy in and that’s what I tried to do,” Hickey said.
He said the man had apparently bled to death in the water. Ten reported that the shark had bitten through the victim’s wetsuit on his upper right thigh, tearing off much of his leg. The wounds were being examined to identify the size and species of the shark.
The victim was a local man in his 50s whose name has not been released. His wife was on the beach at the time of the attack.
Cullen said the crew of a rescue helicopter spotted what appeared to be a great white shark later but lost sight of it. She said all Byron Bay beaches would be closed for 24 hours due to the potential danger.
Byron Bay is a renowned surfing location near Cape Byron, the most easterly point of the Australian mainland, about 800 km north of Sydney.
The last fatal shark attack in Australia was April 3, when a 63-year-old woman was taken by a 3-to-4-meter shark near the village of Tathra, 340 km south of Sydney.
Although sharks are common off Australia’s coasts, the country has averaged fewer than two fatal attacks per year in recent decades. But fatal attacks are becoming more common. Two men were killed off the east and west coasts in one week last November. They were the only fatalities in 2013.
Shark kills man in Australia despite rescue try
Shark kills man in Australia despite rescue try
Tarique Rahman-led BNP set to form Bangladesh’s next government after major election win
- Jamaat-e-Islami, banned during Hasina’s government, won 68 seats
- Majority of Bangladeshis endorsed sweeping reforms in national referendum
DHAKA: The Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by Tarique Rahman, is set to form the country’s next government after securing a more than two-thirds majority in the first elections since a student-led uprising in 2024 ousted ex-prime minister, Sheikh Hasina.
The BNP has won at least 209 seats out of the 299 contested, according to the latest election results released by the Election Commission on Friday, paving the way for Rahman to become the country’s next prime minister.
Jamaat-e-Islami, banned during Hasina’s 15 years in power, has registered its best performance yet, winning at least 68 seats and emerging as the main opposition party.
The National Citizen Party, which was born out of the 2024 protests, was in third place with six seats, including for its leader Nahid Islam, while Hasina’s Awami League was barred from participating in the elections.
The majority of Bangladeshis also reportedly voted “yes” in a national referendum on the “July National Charter” that was held alongside the general vote on Thursday.
Named after the month when the uprising that toppled Hasina began, the charter is aimed at achieving sweeping democratic reforms to prevent authoritarian administrations, including term limits for premiers, stronger presidential powers and greater judicial independence, while also proposing increased representation of women in parliament.
The BNP-led government is likely to follow the commitments made under the charter, said Prof. A.S.M. Amanullah, vice chancellor of the National University in Dhaka, adding that the implementation of the July charter was also included in the party’s election manifesto that covers reform of the state and rebuilding of the economy.
“Mr. Tarique Rahman is a highly trained politician, highly sensitive politician, and he takes decisions based on facts. I believe he prepared himself to run this country locally and play a role internationally,” Amanullah told Arab News.
Rahman is the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and former President Ziaur Rahman. He returned to Bangladesh late last year after nearly two decades of self-imposed exile in the UK, and assumed BNP’s leadership days later, following his mother’s death from a prolonged illness.
In an interview with Arab News earlier this week, the 60-year-old pledged to pursue accountability for the former leadership and meet the political and economic expectations of the youth movement that brought about the change.
The new government is likely to be a mix of young and old politicians, Amanullah said, with Jemaat-e-Islami set to balance out the BNP’s rule.
“This is a very good size of opposition to press the issues or to challenge the government on different issues, different policies and decisions of the government. I’m hopeful about Jemaat,” he said.
“The way the people voted for these major two parties, the BNP and Jemaat, I think if they could work jointly, Bangladesh should see a stable political situation in the near future.”
Mohiuddin Ahmad, a political analyst and researcher, described Jemaat-e-Islami as “the most organized party” in Bangladesh and that it would therefore play an “instrumental” role as the opposition party.
Voter turnout averaged 59.44 percent, the EC said, with many Bangladeshis considering this week’s vote as their first “free and fair” election after more than 17 years.
“Such a result of an election we haven’t actually experienced before,” Muhiuddin Iqbal, a history student at Dhaka University, told Arab News.
“The festive feeling has not gone yet, so we’re very much excited about it and hopeful for the future.”
