Daily Edge :
THE ARMED SIEGE at a café in Sydney’s business district has come to an end, after police stormed the building with stun grenades and live rounds.
Officers dressed in riot gear raided the building at around 2am local time.
New South Wales Police have confirmed that the gunman has been killed along with two others. Four others were injured as part of the police assault on the café.
The 50-year-old gunman was pronounced dead after being taken to hospital, as were a 34-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman.
Two women have been taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries, while a male police officer suffered a wound to his face from gunshot pellets.
Another woman has been taken to hospital with a gunshot wound to her shoulder with another woman also hospitalised as a precaution.
The sudden ending to the 16-hour siege came after
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a lull in activity. Police confirmed that a total of 17 people had been taken hostage.
It had been thought police were settling in for a long operation, and the lights were turned off in the Lindt café, which is located in the busy Martin Place shopping area.
Police said in a press conference that armed police decided to enter the building “as a result of gunfire inside”.
They have also confirmed that no explosives were found inside the café.
Australian Prime Minster Tony Abbott has said that, “Australians should be reassured by how our security services dealt with this brush with terrorism.”
Broadcasters in Sydney had known the identity of the gunman since early on Monday. His name was released shortly after nightfall, as 9 News and other outlets confirmed it was 49-year-old cleric Sheik Man Haron Monis.
