Mass Shootings Are Rare in Australia, Which Has Strict Gun Laws

The country’s stringent rules are often lauded as a model policy by proponents of gun control in the United States.A pile of firearms that were taken out of circulation during the Australian government’s buy-back operation following the 1996 Port Arthur massacre in which 35 people were killed by a lone gunman. Credit...David Gray/ReutersDec. 14, 2025, 7:54 a.m. ETMass shootings are rare in Australia, which overhauled its gun laws after a gunman massacred 35 people in 1996.That shooting, in the Tasmanian town of Port Arthur, led to a national reckoning in Australia, and the government responded by cracking down on gun ownership.The authorities essentially banned assault rifles and many other semiautomatic rifles, as well as shotguns. They imposed mandatory gun buybacks that took as many as one in three privately held guns out of circulation, and, according to some estimates, melted down as many as one million guns. They also imposed new registration requirements and restrictions on gun purchases.It was unclear what types of guns were used on Sunday by two gunmen who killed at least 11 people and injured others at Bondi Beach in Sydney on Sunday evening, according to the police. One of the gunmen was killed at the scene, the police said.For two decades after the 1996 attack, there were no mass shootings in Australia. In 2018, a man killed six members of his own family and then himself.American supporters of gun control, including former President Barack Obama, have pointed to Australia’s strict regulations as a guide to limiting such events in the United States.Amelia Nierenberg is a Times reporter covering international news from London.Jin Yu Young is a reporter and researcher for The Times, based in Seoul, covering South Korea and international breaking news.SKIP