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By Staff Writers, Malta Today
Malta Today
Monday, Dec 15, 2014
A lone gunman has issued demands in Sydney, as an unknown number of hostages are held in a cafe in the busy downtown district.
The gunman released videos stating that he wants an Islamic State flag and a phone call from Austrian prime minister Tony Abbott. He also has made bomb threats.
Five people have fled from the cafe in the heart of Sydney, where the dramatic hostage situation began at around 9.15am local time.
Three people ran out of the cafe six hours into the hostage crisis. About an hour later, two women wearing aprons with the Lindt chocolate logo fled the cafe into the arms of heavily armed police officers.
Television video shot through the cafe's windows showed several people with their arms in the air and hands pressed against the glass, and two people holding up a black flag with the Shahada, or Islamic declaration of faith, written on it.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott said it was "profoundly shocking" that people were being "held hostage by an armed person claiming political motivation".
He was speaking after chairing a meeting of the national security committee in Canberra.
Hundreds of police officers have shut down a usually bustling area in Australia's most populous city amid the crisis, evacuating nearby buildings and closing a nearby train station.
Authorities said many of the details about the situation remained unclear, including the number of people inside the cafe and the motivations of the hostage taker.
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