A high-profile Sydney lawyer is undergoing emergency surgery after being shot outside his home in what police believe is a targeted attack.

Police arrived at a home on Narelle Crescent in the western Sydney suburb of Greenacre at 10.25am on Wednesday to find criminal defence lawyer Mahmoud Abbas suffering gunshot wounds.

The 31-year-old was outside the home when he was approached by an unknown person and shot, police said.

He reportedly managed to make it inside the house to call for help. Paramedics treated Mr Abbas at the scene before he was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Mr Abbas has represented several high-profile clients, including members of an alleged ISIS-inspired terror cell charged with plotting to destroy Sydney landmarks, and controversial former Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehajer.

He has also represented Sydney underworld figures, including handyman Ahmed Jaghbir in his trial over the assassination of Kemel Barakat.

Mr Abbas began his career working as a junior lawyer for Sydney criminal lawyer Brett Galloway.

Officers from Bankstown police station and the state’s criminal squads are investigating.

Detective Superintendent Adam Johnson said Mr Abbas would have emergency surgery on Wednesday.

“This is clearly a targeted and brazen shooting,” he said.

He said Johnson said police would investigate potential links to other recent shootings in Sydney.

“The motive and reasoning behind it, I don’t know. It’s too early to speculate,” he said.

A crime scene has been established as officers investigate the daylight crime.

Narelle Crescent is also where gangland figure Mahmoud “Brownie” Ahmad was shot dead in 2022.

Wedneday’s shooting also came three days after three people were shot in nearby Mayvic Street early on Sunday. A man and a woman in one parked car and a second man in another were injured.

The woman, aged 19, was in hospital in a stable condition after being hit by a bullet in her chest.

Two men, aged 22 and 25, were left fighting for life, with wounds to their heads and necks.

NSW Police were reluctant to say whether the weekend shootings were gang-related or if they suspected a lone gunman or several suspects.

However, they also suspected those attacks were targeted.

“Terrible behaviour. It’s a very serious offence, people shooting at people,” Superintendent Simon Glasser said at the weekend.

“It could have resulted in a death at this stage and it still may. We’re treating it at its highest, we’ve put all of our resources on it.

“We’re trying to establish what both parties were doing at the location.”

-with AAP