The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, allegedly lunged at Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, 53, and stabbed him in the head during his sermon at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley, in Sydney’s west, at about 7pm on Monday.
Father Isaac Royel, who serves in the Assyrian ministry at St Shimun Bar Sabbae and St Mary Cathedral, was among many parishioners who attempted to intervene – and as a result he allegedly suffered lacerations and a shoulder wound.
Churchgoers said they had seen the alleged offender wandering the perimeter of the church before the attack and said he stood out from the regular parishioners.
He knew the service was being live-streamed and he waited for the camera to turn on before the (alleged) attack,’ said Mary Anoya.Both men and the 16-year-old boy were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
where the teen remains under police guard.Now, a relative has revealed the family’s shock over last night’s event, describing the boy as a ‘quiet teenager’ who was ‘not a terrorist or ISIS sympathiser’.