Mass Stabbing At Australian Mall, 14 Stabbed, 6 Killed, Baby Fighting For Its Life

A critically injured baby's mother is among six shoppers killed, and eight others stabbed, by a man armed with a knife at a major Sydney shopping center.

Witnesses say the dark-haired, bearded man, wearing a Kangaroos ARL jersey, chased and slashed at shoppers as he went on a wild rampage through Westfield Bondi Junction before he was shot dead by police.

Among the dead is a mother, 38, who threw her stabbed nine-month-old to a bystander in a bid to save his life.

It is believed that the mother and her baby were the first to be targeted by the alleged attacker.

Details later emerged of the heroics of bystanders and a female police inspector who single-handedly tackled the knifeman and shot him dead, before she then started giving CPR to one of his victims.

NSW Police said the officer was attached to Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command attended and that she was allegedly confronted by a man with a knife.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cooke said that the alleged attacker was confronted by a lone female officer on the fifth level of the complex.

The officer entered the scene alone as it was happening before the rest of the force arrived.

'She confronted the offender who had moved by this stage to level five. As she continued to walk quickly behind him to catch up with him,' Commissioner Cooke said.

'He turned, faced her, raised a knife. She discharged a firearm and that person is now deceased.'