l****z
发帖数: 29846 | 1 【 以下文字转载自 USANews 讨论区 】
发信人: lczlcz (lcz), 信区: USANews
标 题: 很好,木虱吝占领一个悉尼的咖啡馆,绑架了顾客做人质
发信站: BBS 未名空间站 (Mon Dec 15 12:42:01 2014, 美东)
Police toting automatic weapons and lobbing flash grenades stormed a Sydney
cafe early Tuesday, bringing to a dramatic end a 16-hour standoff in which a
jihadist and murder suspect held an unknown number of hostages in a scene
much of the world watched on television.
A series of explosions, believed to be gunshots and flash grenades, came
just before 2:30 a.m. local time as several more hostages fled Lindt
Chocolat Cafe, where a man identified as Man Haron Monis, an Iranian also
known for sending hate mail to the families of fallen soldiers, was holed up
with an unknown number of captives. The drama, which began early Monday,
appeared to be coming to a dramatic resolution, as frenzied activity
enveloped the scene that Australians had been watching on television for
hours.
Four of the hostages were seen being taken from the cafe on stretchers, with
three possibly being in critical condition, Sky News reports. One hostage
received CPR at the scene. There are also unconfirmed reports that two
people are dead, including the gunman.
"Police and paramedics have stormed the building," the Sydney Morning Herald
reported. "Dozens of continuous bangs and possibly gun shots have lit up
the sky."
Several people were taken from the building on stretchers as an alarm rang
and police in riot gear moved in and out of the shop, in the heart of
Australia's largest city's business district. A bomb disposal robot was seen
being deployed in the shop, though police said the standoff was over. It
was not clear if anyone was killed or what had happened to the suspect. The
handful of hostages seen fleeing as the explosions echoed through the
predawn air followed escapes hours earlier by five captives.
For hours, television news crews had broadcast footage of frightened
hostages looking out through the front window. Initially, police did not
identify Monis, though they knew he was the suspect inside. His identity was
known early on to police and media alike, but was only released for the
record by police sources as night fell on Sydney with the nation transfixed
on the televised scene.
During the evening hours on Monday, several people were seen with their arms
in the air and hands pressed against the glass, and two people were seen
holding up a black flag associated with Islamic fanaticism. Australian
broadcaster Network Ten reported that Monis, seen wielding a shotgun and a
machete, has forced hostages to call him "The Brother" and demanded to speak
directly with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
"The gunman seems to be sort of rotating these people through these
positions on the windows with their hands and faces up against the glass,"
Seven Network television news reporter Chris Reason said, according to The
Associated Press. "One woman we've counted was there for at least two hours
-- an extraordinary, agonizing time for her surely having to stand on her
feet for that long."
Related Image
haronmonis.jpgExpand / Contract
The self-styled sheikh is a suspect in a murder case and well-known for his
twisted campaign of writing hateful letters to the families of fallen
soldiers. (AP)
The drama began during the Monday morning rush hour and carried into night
time in Australia's largest city. Five hostages escaped some six hours into
the ordeal, running out a side door and into the arms of police, who have
the shop surrounded. The shop is in Sydney's central business district in
Martin Place, a plaza in the heart of the city's financial and shopping
district that is packed with holiday shoppers this time of year. Shops in
the area were closed and people were ordered to stay out.
A journalist on the scene tweeted that the terror suspect appeared to fly
into a rage after the hostages escaped.
"The gunman could be seen from here getting extremely agitated, shouting
at remaining hostages."
- Chris Reason, journalist
"The gunman could be seen from here getting extremely agitated, shouting at
remaining hostages," tweeted journalist Chris Reason.
Reason described Monis as unshaven, wearing a white shirt and a black cap,
and holding what appeared to be a pump-action shotgun. He could be seen
pacing back and forth past the cafe's four windows. Sky News described Monis
as bearded, middle-aged and wearing a black and white headband. Sky cited
reports that he is known to police and media outlets.
"Just two hours ago when we saw that rush of escapees, we could see from up
here in this vantage point the gunman got extremely agitated as he realized
those five had got out. He started screaming orders at the people, the
hostages who remain behind," Reason reported.
Related Image
Australia-hotage-situation-121414.jpgExpand / Contract
Dec. 15, 2014: A police runs along a street close to a cafe under siege at
Martin Place in the central business district of Sydney, Australia. (AP)
Monis, who reportedly emigrated to Australia in 1996, is known in Australia
for his public campaign of writing letters to the families of fallen
soldiers calling them “murderers” and urging the recipients to lobby the
government to withdraw from Afghanistan. Haron was charged in 2009 with
using the postal service to harass in a case he fought all the way to
Australia’s highest court, which dismissed his appeal.
Last year, he was charged in connection with the murder of his ex-wife in a
case that is pending as Monis is free on bail. He was charged earlier this
year with sexual assault of a woman who went to his office in New South
Wales for "spiritual healing."
"This is a one-off random individual. It's not a concerted terrorism event
or act. It's a damaged goods individual who's done something outrageous,"
his former lawyer, Manny Conditsis, told Australian Broadcasting Corp. "His
ideology is just so strong and so powerful that it clouds his vision for
common sense and objectiveness."
As night descended on Sydney, the lights inside the shop went off, but it
was unclear if that was by the suspected jihadist's choice or if the police
made the cafe go dark as a negotiating tactic. Earlier, the gunman appeared
to be rotating frightened hostages in front of the window, holding up the
black Islamist flag "Shahada" flag, an emblem of Jabhat al-Nusra, the Al
Qaeda-linked terror group fighting - sometimes with, sometimes against -
Islamic State in Syria.
The gunman was reportedly relaying threats and demands through two hostages,
and claimed to have planted two bombs inside the cafe and two others
elsewhere in Sydney's central business district. New South Wales Police
Commissioner Andrew Scipione told reporters Monday evening that authorities
were concentrating their efforts solely on the cafe and were not concerned
with any other location
Late Monday, Abbott released a pre-recorded statement calling the attack "
very disturbing" and "profoundly shocking." His office has not responded to
the gunman's demands.
Three men were seen running from a fire exit of the cafe approximately six
hours after the hostage situation began at 9:45 a.m. local time. Moments
later, two women believed to be employees, followed suit. It was not
immediately clear how the hostages escaped.
New South Wales Deputy Police Commissioner for Specialist Operations
Catherine Burn said negotiators had made contact with the unidentified
gunman and believe he is the lone suspect inside the cafe. Burn also said
that fewer than 30 people were held inside the cafe, though she did not give
an exact number. Local reports put the number at between 10 and 15, and
witnesses said they do not believe any children are inside.
The U.S. Consulate, located just south of the cafe, was also evacuated and a
warning issued urging Americans in Sydney to "maintain a high level of
vigilance and take appropriate steps to enhance your personal security." A
White House official told Fox News that President Obama had been briefed on
the situation.
Lindt Australia posted a message on its Facebook page thanking the public
for its support.
"We are deeply concerned over this serious incident and our thoughts and
prayers are with the staff and customers involved and all their friends and
families," the company wrote.
The government raised Australia's terror warning level in September in
response to the domestic threat posed by supporters of the Islamic State
group. Counterterror law enforcement teams later conducted dozens of raids
and made several arrests in Australia's three largest cities -- Melbourne,
Sydney and Brisbane. One man arrested during a series of raids in Sydney was
charged with conspiring with an Islamic State leader in Syria to behead a
random person in downtown Sydney.
The Islamic State group, which now holds a third of Syria and Iraq, has
threatened Australia in the past. In September, Islamic State group
spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani issued an audio message urging so-called "
lone wolf" attacks abroad, specifically mentioning Australia. Al-Adnani told
Muslims to kill all "disbelievers," whether they be civilians or soldiers. |
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