New Zealand attacks: Father critically ill after being shot multiple times shielding toddler son from mosque gunman

Wife and mother reveals how Zulfirman Syah protected their boy

Adam Forrest
Sunday 17 March 2019 13:08 GMT
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Australian TV presenter Waleed Aly gives heartfelt speech following New Zealand terror attack

A father saved the life of his two-year-old son by throwing himself in front of the bullets during the shooting attack at Linwood mosque in Christchurch, it has been revealed.

Zulfirman Syah remains in intensive care after being badly hurt while covering his child to protect him from the vicious and indiscriminate attack on unarmed worshippers during Friday prayers.

Mr Syah’s American wife, Alta Marie, said their son, Averroes, is now recovering from minor injuries in hospital, but her husband was hit in several different places.

“My husband shielded our son during the attack at Linwood Islamic Centre, which caused him to receive most of the bullets and much more complex injuries than our son,” she said on Facebook.

“He is in stable condition following the extensive exploratory and reconstructive surgery he had earlier today.

“While he is still in the intensive care unit at this stage, he will be moved to the general ward whenever it is deemed appropriate - likely in the next day or so.”

The two-year-old boy “sustained minor injuries and had surgery this morning to extract some shrapnel”, his mother added.

“He is recovering nicely and has been cheerful while keeping the staff on the children’s ward entertained with his talkative and energetic nature.”

Zulfirman Syah, his son Averroes and his wife Alta Marie

Mr Syah and his family moved from Indonesia to New Zealand only two months ago. He was described by Jodi Puhalla, a friend of the couple, as “a talented, hardworking artist”.

Ms Puhalla, who has set up a fundraising page for the family to help with their medical expenses, said Alta Marie was cooking in the kitchen of their new home when she received a call from her husband.

It wasn’t clear until his second call, minutes later, that they had been hurt in the attack at the mosque.

The death toll in the Christchurch massacre has risen to 50 after a body was discovered at the Al Noor mosque, New Zealand police commissioner Mike Bush said on Sunday.

The number of people injured has also risen to 50, he added. Police said 11 of the wounded were in a critical condition.

Some of the victims were migrants from countries such as Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, Somalia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

Many of those killed have been named by family members over the past 24 hours, while details of those who survived the attack have also emerged.

People leave flowers and tributes at the Botanic Gardens in Christchurch (Getty Images)

Abdul Aziz was hailed a hero for preventing more deaths by chasing the gunman away from Linwood mosque. The 48-year-old father told his children to stay inside as he picked up a credit card machine and ran outside to throw it at the attacker.

A fund set up to help victims’ families and those who suffered injuries has raised over NZ$4.3m (around £2.2m).

The page on the site givealittle was created by a council of victim support groups. The council said it would need to create a formal process to distribute the money.

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