Hostages were held for 16 hours as the extremist demanded to have a phone call with Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
The standoff between Australian officials and a Muslim extremist ended on Tuesday in Sydney. Two hostages, along with the gunman, were killed in the 16-hour struggle, and possibilities of the gunman’s connections to ISIS leave Australians disturbed.
Man Haron Monis (50) took control of Lindt Chocolate Café in Sydney, Australia late on Monday. Monis is a subscriber of extremist Sunni theology and held 17 hostages at the beginning of the siege. He held the hostages at gunpoint with a shotgun and forced them to put their hands on the glass at the entrance of the café. Some of them were holding up a black flag with Arabic, which read: “There is no God but God and Mohammed is the prophet of God.”
Police surrounded the building and were equipped with heavy armor and weaponry soon after the gunman captured the café. Hostages used social media to relay information from inside the café. During the struggle, five of the hostages escaped the café to safety, which infuriated the gunman said CNN.
During the standoff, Monis made two demands. He demanded a flag, and a phone call with Prime Minister Tony Abbott. The gunman used the hostages to communicate the demands.
After night set in, the police threw flash-bang grenades into the café and raided the building. Gunshots ensued and the officials subdued the gunman. The shooting left two hostages dead and a police officer wounded. One officer suffered a minor gunshot wound to the face and is being treated in a hospital; it is unknown whether the gunman killed the two hostages or the crossfire was responsible for the casualties.
The gunman is believed to have acted alone. Back in 2013, Monis was found guilty of sending letters to relatives of Australian service members. He called them “Hitler’s soldiers” in the letters. He was also charged with being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife. Noleen Hayson Pal was stabbed 18 times and set on fire last year.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the two deceased hostages, the wounded and the other hostages,” said Prime Minister Tony Abbott in response to the situation.
Though uncertain, some fear that the siege may have been a result of the ISIS message to Muslims to attack non-Muslims. Abbott wants the Australian public to stay calm and take things into perspective.
“The whole point of politically motivated violence is to scare people out of being themselves. Australia is a peaceful, open and generous society,” said Abbott.
