A gunman stormed a cafe in central Sydney yesterday during morning rush hour and no fewer than 15 people were taken hostage by him. The hostages were then forced to hold up a black flag with white writing in Arabic, an emblem linked to terror groups. Three men and two women were able to make it out of the Lindt cafe in Sydney’s Martin Place unharmed. According to an eye witness, the gunman became “extremely” agitated after realizing 5 people successfully escaped the cafe under his watch.
When it got darker last night, food was seen being served to the hostages from the cafe’s kitchen. The lights in the cafe were reported to have went out but the police have declined to confirm whether they were the ones that cut the power supply from the building or not. At the moment, no injuries have been recorded and the police commandant has promised they’ll be patient and make sure the siege is resolved without getting violent.
The drama started on Sunday morning at around 9.30 am when the gunman stormed the cafe, brought out his gun from a blue carry bag to intimidate the people and disabled access to the cafe’s door. The targeted cafe is located in one of Sydney’s busiest plazas in the central business district.
A number of police men were immediately sent to the location to take control of the situation. The police went to action and evacuated surrounding buildings as well as closing off part of the city. The incident has sent shock-waves across Australia as terrorist attacks in the country are very rare.
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Photos: DailyMail/Getty/AAP/AP/Matrix AU
[author ]Noretta Loum[/author]
