Terrorism Strikes Sydney: Hilton Hotel Bombing

A Ten Eyewitness News bulletin covering the bombing of the Hilton Hotel in Sydney on 13 February 1978, during the first ever Commonwealth Heads of Government Regional Meeting (CHOGRM).

The report includes a statement from then NSW Premier Neville Wran in which he offers a $100,000 reward as part of an appeal for anyone with information about the bombing to come forward. 

The bombing was the first major terrorist incident in Australia. The bomb had been planted in a garbage bin just outside the hotel entrance and exploded when the bin was emptied into a garbage truck in the early hours of the morning. The explosion instantly killed two garbage collectors. A police officer who was on duty at the hotel died in hospital from his injuries. Eleven other people were injured by the blast.  

To this date the 1978 Sydney Hilton bombing is shrouded in controversy. Although members of the spiritual organisation Ananda Marga were charged and convicted (one was later acquitted on appeal), several conspiracy theories involving branches of government and ASIO have also been floated in the media.