Ongoing Incident In Sydney Australia, (amended Auntie)

[anneasquith]

sky news.
Have amended the title at anne's request :-)
auntie xxx

[Peter Pedant]

currently on Beeb channel 130

[jno]

you don't want to live in a world where mods can rewrite your posts... (and I don't think you do). Ask the Ed tomorrow.

[wolf63]

A totally horrific situation to be in - yet held in a Lindt Chocolate Cafe! Surreal.

[Peter Pedant]

FBS has translated the Arabic and it is the shahada = witness, testimony

"There is no God but God and Mohd is his messenger"

as in here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahada

[Peter Pedant]

Peeth, Sydney it is all so so far away....

[wolf63]

I live in Perth.

[Peter Pedant]

I am pleased to hear that Wolf and is it all quiet there ?

[wolf63]

Typical Scottish morning PP. :-)

[trt]

Its Sydney

[anneasquith]

^^^^ we know ,

[1ozzy]

Apparently 3 hostages have now been released.

[janbee]

My niece lives in Perth. Fortunately ,at the moment, she is here in the UK for Christmas.

[ChillDoubt]

Reports suggest 5 have escaped the shop. Hope that doesn't irk the gunman too much!

[1ozzy]

Hopefully they have useful info for the authorities.

[Jomlett]

Sydney siege man identified:

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/martin-place-sydney-siege-gunman-identified-as-man-maron-monis-20141215-127sxt.html

[ChillDoubt]

Sky News says 5 more hostages have escaped.

Is this fella more Ali Babar than Ali Jihadi?
One hopes so....

[Peter Pedant]

a loud bang and police man rush forward

more scared hostages flee.

really scared - much more than those actors in 'Airplane' !

[ChillDoubt]

Sky Newsflash says gunfire heard.

[-Talbot-]

30 seconds of rapid fire..............surely the gunman is dead?

[ChillDoubt]

That sounded like a series of thunderflashes, prior to him (hopefully) being turned into something resembling a teabag.