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Hostage standoff in Sydney. Landmarks evacuated. Five hostages escape standoff in Sydney but siege continues
(about 4 hours later)
Updated at 1:25 a.m. EST: An all-day siege continued Monday evening in Sydney, where employees and customers were taken hostage during morning rush hour at a cafe in the city’s main financial and shopping district. Five hostages have since emerged, running from the building and hiding behind heavily armed officers.
New South Wales police confirmed three people have made it out of the Lindt chocolate shop and cafe in Sydney, where police said an “undisclosed” number of people were taken hostage during Monday morning rush hour. Six hours after a gunman entered the store, local TV stations reported seeing three people run from the building and hide behind heavily armed police. They appeared to be an employee and two customers, the Guardian reported. Witnesses said they saw an armed man walk into a Lindt chocolate shop and cafe Monday morning in Martin Place, a plaza in the heart of the city. Soon, local TV stations showed people through a window with their hands raised. Two held up a black sign with Arabic writing that read, “There is no God but Allah” and “Mohammed is the messenger of God,” according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Shortly after, local news footage showed two more people flee from the cafe. A police spokeswomen told The Washington Post that although she could confirm the reports, no official statement has been released. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters “an armed person” was “claiming political motivation.”
New South Wales Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn could not confirm how many people were still inside but told the Sydney Morning Herald the number was less than 30. “The whole point of politically motivated violence is to scare people out of being themselves,” he said earlier in the day. “Australia is a peaceful, open and generous society. Nothing should ever change that and that’s why I would urge all Australians today to go about their business as usual.”
“The information that I have is that nobody has been harmed or injured at the moment,” she said. “We clearly are dealing with a situation that is unfolding and it’s happening as we speak and the most important thing is the safety of those hostages and I wouldn’t want to do anything that may impact on the safety of those hostages.” Early Monday evening, hostages began to emerge. Local TV news stations first showed two men run out the front. A third appeared to exit a side door. A short time later, two women fled from the store. Police would not say whether the hostages were released or escaped.
In the past two hours, Burn said police have made contact with the perpetrator, whose motive is still unknown. Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn told reporters during a news conference she could not confirm how many people were still inside the cafe. She said the hostages were being evaluated by health officials and would then speak to police. One was taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital and listed in “satisfactory condition,” according to local news reports.
“Police negotiators have had contact and they continue to have contact and we will work through this as we do with our negotiators,” she told the newspaper. “It might take a bit of time, but we want to resolve this peacefully and I assure you if it takes a bit of time we will take that time.” She added: “We have activated our investigators and our intelligence officers so we now have numerous police who are working on establishing who this person is and what those motives might be.” Authorities have identified the gunman but have not released his or her name. They are treating the situation as a counter-terror operation. Burn said police have been in contact with the gunman throughout the day “in various forms,” and that police were treating it as a “negotiation.”
Original story “There is speculation about what he might want, but we have to deal with him at the level of police negotiation,” she said during the conference.
New South Wales police said Monday an undisclosed number of people have been taken hostage at a cafe in Sydney. At least two have been seen through windows at Lindt Cafe with their hands raised, while a black flag with Arabic writing waved behind them, stating “There is no God but Allah” and “Mohammed is the messenger of God,” according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The incident began Monday morning as people were arriving for work in Martin Place, police spokesperson Senior Constable Lauren Maher told The Washington Post. Surrounding streets and train station were shut down. The Sydney Opera House, State Library and the U.S. Consulate General in Sydney were evacuated. Consulate staff members continued to work from a secure location, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
Although authorities would not disclose, or did not know, who took the hostages or how many there were, Australian TV reported that there were about 10 employees and 30 customers in the cafe. No injuries have been reported.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said that although the suspect’s motivation is still unknown, “we have to appreciate that even in a society such as ours, there are people that would wish to do us harm.”
“We don’t know whether this is politically motivated, although obviously there are some indications that it could be,” told in the nation’s capital, Canberra. He added: “The whole point of politically motivated violence is to scare people out of being themselves. Australia is a peaceful, open and generous society. Nothing should ever change that and that’s why I would urge all Australians today to go about their business as usual.”
A police spokesman told The Washington Post the incident began Monday morning as people were arriving for work in Martin Place, a plaza in the Sydney’s financial and shopping district. Witnesses told BBC News they saw a man with a bag and gun walk into the chocolate shop and cafe. Streets surrounding the area were shut down. The Martin Place train station was also closed. Police said in a statement that officers were handling an “armed incident” and that officers were “attempting to make contact with those inside” the cafe.
Soon after, local TV footage showed people inside with the black flag up to the window.
Those in the area were instructed to stay away.
As a precaution, the Sydney Opera House, State Library and the U.S. Consulate General in Sydney were evacuated, according to news reports. Consulate staff members continue to work from a secure location, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
Late Monday afternoon, the Sydney Opera House announced it would cancel evening performances.Late Monday afternoon, the Sydney Opera House announced it would cancel evening performances.
Police commissioner Andrew Scipione said there is no confirmation the incident is related to terrorism. When asked whether the hostages were released or escaped, Burn said: “I won’t clarify any operation tactics at the moment. It is really important to remember that this is ongoing, that we still have people who are being held. We still have a person that we are dealing with. So as soon as we are able to provide that information, we certainly will but the good news is that we do have five people who have come out of that building and that we are now dealing with.”
During Burn’s third news conference Monday, reporters said people inside the cafe were posting alleged demands from the gunman on social media. Burn said authorities are monitoring Facebook and Twitter as part of a “tactical response” but did not elaborate. Police have asked that such demands not be made public. Since then, the Sydney Morning Herald said on its live feed, “This blog is retracting reports of multiple demands that had come from a number of media outlets.”
After the incident, world leaders were briefed on the situation. President Barack Obama spoke with his counter-terrorism adviser, Lisa Monaco.
British Prime Minister David Cameron wrote on Twitter, “It’s deeply concerning and my thoughts are with all those caught up in it.”
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi called it “disturbing.” New Zealand prime minister John Key and Peter O’Neill, the prime minister of Papua New Guinea, joined the conversation as well.
Stephen Harper, prime minister of Canada, whose parliament was attacked in October by an alleged jihadist sympathizer, extended his support.
“Canada’s thoughts and prayers are with our Australian friends #MartinPlace #SydneySiege,” Stephen Harper posted on Twitter.
Police commissioner Andrew Scipione said earlier on Monday evening that there was no confirmation the incident is related to terrorism.
“We want the matter resolved peacefully and we will do all we need to do to ensure that,” he said. “We are very contained. We certainly have tight restrictions and tight controls around that location and we will work as long as we need to bring this to an outcome. The officers there are trained and professional. They know what they’re doing and they have trained for. This I am sure they will get through this and this will be an outcome that will be positive.”“We want the matter resolved peacefully and we will do all we need to do to ensure that,” he said. “We are very contained. We certainly have tight restrictions and tight controls around that location and we will work as long as we need to bring this to an outcome. The officers there are trained and professional. They know what they’re doing and they have trained for. This I am sure they will get through this and this will be an outcome that will be positive.”
Abbott said the incident was still unfolding and urged caution. Although Martin Place has been dubbed an “exclusion zone,” Abbott and Burn encouraged people to go about their business in other areas.
“This is a very disturbing incident. I can understand the concerns and anxieties of the Australia people at a time like this but our thoughts and prayers must above all go out to the individuals who are caught up in this,” he said. “This is a very disturbing incident. I can understand the concerns and anxieties of the Australia people at a time like this but our thoughts and prayers must above all go out to the individuals who are caught up in this,” Abbott said.
This story has been updated multiple times.This story has been updated multiple times.