THREE DEAD IN BLOODY END TO SIEGE: Two hostages dead and Muslim gunman killed as police storm Sydney cafe with assault rifles and stun grenades moments after hostages fled
- Police stormed the cafe in central Sydney where a gunman held hostages for more than 16 hours
- Police moved in firing automatic weapons and throwing grenades as hostages were seen fleeing in terror from cafe
- Live TV footage showed hostages running frantically from the cafe at shortly after 2am in small groups
- It came hours after Man Haron Monis was named as the gunman holding people hostage in a Sydney café
- Iranian refugee, 50, was charged with accessory in the murder of his ex-wife
- He was also facing multiple charges of sexual assault while claiming to be a 'spiritual healer'
- Monis received 300 community service hours for sending hate mail to the families of Australian dead soldiers
- The siege follows an unsuccessful attempt to have these charges overturned in the High Court on Friday
- He forced hostages to hold up a black flag with white writing in Arabic, an emblem linked to terror groups MailOnline
He
was arrested in April this year for the sexual assault of a 27-year-old
woman in
2002 after luring her to his clinic following claims he was as an expert in astrology, meditation and black magic, The Daily Telegraph reported.
2002 after luring her to his clinic following claims he was as an expert in astrology, meditation and black magic, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Monis
was slapped with an additional 40 charges in October after more victims
came forward alleging incidents took place in his spiritual healing
clinic in Station Street in Wentworthville, western Sydney." MailOnline.UK
"The white Arabic writing on the black flag is the Shahada, or Islamic declaration of faith. Translated, the statement means
"There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His messenger." It is considered the first of Islam's five pillars of faith, and is similar to the Lord's Prayer in Christianity. It is pervasive throughout Islamic culture, including the green flag of Saudi Arabia. Jihadis have expropriated the Shahada in their own black flag." FOX
"There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His messenger." It is considered the first of Islam's five pillars of faith, and is similar to the Lord's Prayer in Christianity. It is pervasive throughout Islamic culture, including the green flag of Saudi Arabia. Jihadis have expropriated the Shahada in their own black flag." FOX
"Authorities moved in after hearing gunshots" CNN
murders,
Matthew 15:19