The nephew of slain underworld figure Mahmoud "Brownie" Ahmad has been shot dead outside his south-west Sydney home as police try to stop the "tit-for-tat" gangland war from putting the community at risk.
Paramedics and police worked to resuscitate Rami Iskander, who was found lying outside his Knox Street home in Belmore just before 4am with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest and stomach.
Despite their efforts, the 23-year-old died at the scene.
Police said his wife, who is heavily pregnant, was taken to hospital after the incident to be treated for shock.
Confronting footage from the scene showed distressed family members wailing and screaming near Iskander's body, which was covered with a white tarp on the front porch.
One woman can be heard repeatedly yelling: "They f****** shot him."
Police say he had arrived home just before the incident.
Late last month, his uncle "Brownie" Ahmad was fatally gunned down in Greenacre outside a home on Narelle Crescent.
Detective Chief Superintendent Darren Bennett said police were trying to stop more bloodshed.
"We've clearly got a war of sorts in south western Sydney around drug supply and organised crime. That crosses over into family relationships and the like … we know how violent these people are," Superintendent Bennett said.
"When I got the call one of the first things that ran through my mind was we're in a spat of tit-for-tat shootings around organised criminals in south west Sydney."
He said police were "working tirelessly" to stop the violence.
"It’s a resource issue for the NSW Police force and a massive challenge for the community but we're very determined in bringing this to an end as quickly as we can," he said.
Shortly after today's shooting, two vehicles were located on fire at Croydon Park and Bexley North.
Locals told the ABC while they didn't hear the gun shots, they were woken up by the police and ambulance lights at about 5am.
"I never knew that we had such a family living in our street," one woman said.
"It's concerning because we are a very quiet street and a lot of families and children live on this street and we like to know that we are safe."
A registered nurse who has been living in the area for 13 years and was asleep with her grandchildren said the lack of information from police had only added to her worries.
"It's very sad to hear, this street was the best street and we didn't have any issues," she said.
"I work night shift, I come home 11 o'clock, sometimes one o'clock and I'm just worried now.
"I don't know what's going to happen and this morning I asked those people [police] again and they didn't tell me what happened."
Strike Force Bati has been created to investigate the shooting, led by the Homicide Squad with assistance from the designated gang-fighting squad, Raptor.
Multiple crime scenes are being examined by specialist forensic officers as detectives investigate the circumstances surrounding the event.
Police say it is too early to confirm the motive of the shooting but have confirmed they are investigating whether it is linked to dozens of gang murders across Western Sydney.
Senior Comanchero bikie Tarek Zahed is still in hospital after he was shot and his brother was killed at Auburn's Bodyfit gym on Tuesday night.
His funeral was held yesterday.
