A memorial is growing in Sydney after two gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach on Sunday.

Children at Congregation Beth Israel in Scottsdale got an early start on the holiday festivities, singing songs, playing games and lighting the Hanukkah menorah.

Hanukkah, one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays, begins Sunday, Dec. 14. Known as the festival of lights, Hanukkah is an eight-day holiday in the Jewish faith marked by the nightly lighting of candles.

Sunday's terrorist attack on Jewish Australians in Sydney highlights the community's fears amid rising antisemitism and government inaction since Oct.7, 2023.

Rabbi Abraham Unger, executive director of New Synagogue Palm Beach, said the holiday recognizes the survival of the Jewish people during a time of widespread assimilation and oppression, as it commemorates the Jewish people’s triumph over Greek-Syrian control more than 2,000 years ago.