can i so far thank the community of new south wales. so far the community has been extremely patient and cooperative. and they understand that we are dealing with a sensitive situation here, that it is a sensitive negotiation. we are prevented from providing a great deal of information. let's be assured though, be assured that all police resources are in place. we are dealing with this. we have the best negotiators in the world, and we are working through this methodically to make sure that nobody is injured. can i just reiterate and thank you for the community and their patients. >> reporter: has the gunman agreed to release the hostages or did they escape? >> i won't clarify operational tactics at the moment. it is really important to remember that this is ongoing. that we still have people who are held. we have a person that we are dealing with. as soon as we are able to provide that information, we certainly will. but the good news is that we do have five people who have come out of that building, and that we are now dealing with. >

we referenced confidence and support of the new south wales. the commissioner and i thanked them for it. we are in this together. at the same time, i had regular briefings as you would expect with senior ministers. we are absolutely 100% behind all of the actions that our police have taken and are doing this very difficult day. for everyone in sydney, tomorrow morning should proceed as usual and just a couple of quick comments i want to make about that. when you go about tomorrow morning or go about as you would, a couple of changes in the city. they will continue to be an exclusion zone around martin place. if you work in the exclusion zone, i'll ask you to work from home tomorrow. a map of the zone will be provided to the media and can be found on the government web site. again, look for the updates on that. the transport network will operate largely as would you expect. but again to make sure check the transport new south wales web site to get full details on your journey. ultimately, we are doing all we can in these difficult circumstances

i've been briefed by commissioner skip epy ernie of e new south wales police. is is an unfolding situation. and as the situation unfolds, there will be operational updates provided by the new south wales police. i want to assure people that the ordinary business of government must go on. and it will go on. and that's why treasurer will be releasing the economic outlook as planned. finally, this is a very disturbing incident. i can understand the concerns and anxieties of the australian people at a time like this. but our thoughts and prayers, must above all, go out to the individuals who are caught up in this, i can think of almost nothing more distressing, more terrifying than to be caught up in such a situation. and our hearts go out to those people. i'm going to leave it to the new south wales police who are in operational charge of this incident to provide those kinds of details. obviously, in a situation like this, all sorts of reports fly around. all sorts of claims are made. so i, i do urge everyone to exercise caution in their reporting, but i will leave

i've been briefed by commissioner schipione of the new south wales police and by commissioner calvin of the australian federal police. this is an unfolding situation, and as the situation unfolds there will be operational updates provided by the new south wales police. i want to assure people that the ordinary business of government must go on and it will go on and that's why treasurer hawkey and finance minister corman will shortly be releasing the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook as planned. finally, this is a very disturbing incident. i can understand the concerns and anxieties of the australian people at a time like this. but our thoughts and prayers must above all go out to the individuals who are caught up in this. i can think of almost nothing more distressing, more terrifying than to be caught up in such a situation. and our hearts go out to those people. >> [ inaudible ]. >> i'm going to leave it to the new south wales police, who are in operational charge of this incident, to provide those kinds of details. obviously, in a situation like this all sorts of reports fly aro

he's convened his counterterrorism committee to discuss the latest, as has the premier of new south wales, which is new south wales state where sydney is based. the statement from tony abbott is pretty general, doesn't really go into detail. they, themselves, probably don't know what is going on, urging calm, allowing the police to do their job. i have seen in some of the coverage, especially on twitter, it is an amazing tool for information, and is a place where misinformation is sent out quickly, including the movement of police in the area. i'm hoping journalists and others will be a little cautious in what they tweet. >> it's important to point that out. can you tell us about the special force, the new south wales police that are on the scene? >> look, i don't know the is numbers of people that are there. they don't get released during a seem. australia has a relatively safe record of terrorism, there was one act, about 25 years ago, but minor incidents here and there. like in a lot of countries, like the u.s. and western countries post 9/11, a huge build-up of counterterrorism forces

he was listening to what the prime minister had to say as well as the new south wales premier. so andrew, a couple of issues that came out of that. first of all, the good news coming from the prime minister there. no intelligence of another threat, but he did say at great lengths that this was in fact a deranged individual and no amount of surveillance may have prevented this attack. >> reporter: yeah, it was interesting. this is almost a double-edged sword, john, because in a sense it's good news that this was just an individual. it's been made quite clear at that conference and preceding press conferences that the hostage taker was acting on his own. time and again we come back to this deeply disturbed individual, infat situation with extremism. deranged. that sort of line to describe the hostage taker. on the other side of that, of course, is the fact that you cannot prepare against people like this. it was interesting. that press conference clearly saying that the terror alert which is high, it was raised to high in september. they're not going to raise it another notch whic

and i just want to say thanks to the new south wales police.credible. their professionalism, their determination, how they have gone about their business has been nothing but exemplary. i'm very proud of them, and indeed, as i get comment after comment across the community how proud they are of the new south wales police. and they have every right to be so. they have done an incredible job in difficult circumstances. and i want to thank them for what they have done. and the prime minister and i had an opportunity to go and thank some that have worked very hard at the police center, many without sleep, going around the clock to ensure that every chance was given to getting out as many hostages as we could. and secondly, and really lastly, i just want to say thanks to this city. i mean, this city is amazing. its people are incredible. and what you are seeing in martin place right now as it unfolds, it is almost as if a beating heart of the city is being put in place. that's what those flowers represent to me. it is showing us that this city is al

we have been hearing from the new south wales commissioner of police and also the new south wales premier. that is right. right.> that is the give a press conference sometime ago. we have a few facts for you. the police commissioner repeatedly referred to an armed cafe.er, only one in the he was later questioned and said there is at least one. as for the number of people inside, he says there are an undisclosed number of hostages. we have heard from the ceo of lindt --this is taking place in he says there -- are 10 staff on duty and potentially 30 customers which is 40 hostages. .ut that is unconfirmed the police commissioner says that other incidents that people may have seen happening around the city are not elected -- connected. >> paul allen in sydney. this ongoing situation, asc taking place at the -- ac taking place at the best a -- a at the taking place lindt cafe. >> we bring you back to australia. we have cameron priced running us on the li -- joining us on the line. >> we have just heard from the police commissioner of south wales. he is updated the situation. .e is concerned at

i want to say to their families that everyone in new south wales stand beside them. ey stand beside them today, they stand beside them tomorrow. stand beside you forever. i want to pay tribute to the men and women of the new south wales police who saved many, many lives over the past 24 hours. they have risked their lives in doing so. i also want to pay tribute to all of the other workers and authorities who provided vanl valuable assistance. they will be provided every support necessary in the coming days weeks and months. we are a peaceful harmonious society which is the envy of the world. today we must go about our usual business, we must work, we must talk to our family, we must talk to our friends. what i say to everyone in new south wales, today we must come together like never before. we are stronger together. we will get through this. we will get through this. with the events this we have seen have shane us, but they do not dampen our resolve. >> good morning, thank you, premier. ladies and gentlemen i'd like to now confirm and leave you in no respect, means t

the new south wales police force is dealing with that situation. see the police giving briefings to new officers. we are hearing that the sydney harbour bridge has been closed down. stopped in both directions. the upper house is being -- the opera house is being evacuated as well. as much as 20 people inside that cafÉ. >> and the police themselves keep on increasing the area where it has become a lockdown, haven't they? you mentioned sydney harbour bridge is one of those and, of course, the opera house, too. it is probably about 400 meters away from the opera house and the harbour bridge. initially, there was a few hundred meter radius. 52 martin place. that was sent into lockdown. as the hours have gone on, they have extended it further and further, including the harbour .ridge, the opera house the circular quay being surrounded by police. the city has an underground train station that has been going through there as well. idea of how big the police presence is at the moment. dozens, are literally from what i can see pit i do not have a specific fi

>> they did seem to be taken a little bit by surprise. >> earlier, the deputy director of the new south wales police took questions at a news conference. that's when we learned that police have maid cde contact wi the gunman. >> i cannot confirm numbers. about how many people might remain or have left. it is really important, i think, for us all to take on board that as this situation is continuing, and as it is unfolding, and as it is that we actually have people who are in this premises at the moment, that we manage it through patience through our negotiators, and we give them the time at the moment that they need to work through this so that they can resolve it. so those operational details will be forthcoming, but it's not a good point in time to speculate. >> can you talk about negotiating? does that mean the police have made contact with the gunman? >> police negotiators have had contact, and they phone have contact. and we will work through this as, as we do with our negotiators. it might take a bit of time, but we want to resolve this peacefully. and i assure you, if it takes a bit of

with regard to the city as a whole, because this is a busy area, what did the new south wales premier have to say about what is going to happen in the next 24 hours, perhaps longer? >> that was interesting the new south wales premier mike baird at the press conference said sydneysiders should go about their business as per normal unless they work this the immediate vicinity of martin place, in which case they should work from home. otherwise he said sydneysiders should get on with their business as per normal. there was an assumes in what he said that this siege will be as it is now, some eight, nine, 10, 12 hours as people get up and start their tuesday. that implied he was suggesting nothing would move, that the police would not mount action nor reach a resolution. i'm perhaps reading too much into what he said. but i found it interesting that he said on tuesday people should get on with his business, assuming nothing changes. the police also said they were in ongoing negotiations with the hostage taker, this armed man inside the cafe, but would not confirm how many people are insid

as new south wales police work to end the situation, mike baird the premier of the new south wales spoke just a few minutes ago. >> we are being tested today in sydney. the police are being tested, the public is being tested. but whatever the test, we will face it head-on. and we will remain a strong, democratic, civil society. >> mike beard with new south wales. we'll keep you updated on this hostage situation throughout the program. >>> it is sunday evening and time to our regular work week ahead. buried deep inside, changes to dodd frank. the reform bill passed in the wake of a financial crisis, critics say it will be easier for banks to gamble with taxpayer money, your money. we begin our look at dodd frank and the changes to it in this report from patricia sabga. >> j.p. morgan chief jamie dimon, personally telephoned rlg representativerepresentatives o. had opponents crying foul. >> wall street is the result of citigroup and the other wall street companies now can continue to engage in reckless derivative speculation. >> derivatives that bet heavily on the future of the housing mar

the new south wales police tell us this. let me read you this quote. "all we can confirm at this time is that there is a police operation taking place. we are recommending that no one goes near that area. we're trying to establish exactly what is happening. we also have an affiliate, news 7 on the ground in sydney, they say there are two gunmen involved. and cnn cannot independently confirm that. we're getting new information coming from our affiliate. our affiliate on the ground telling us that around 9:44 a.m. local time, remember, it's monday morning there, a woman right there in sydney's central business district saw a man with a blue sports bag. she thought it was a gun. she called the police at that point in time. she said a man entered the lindt chocolate shop there, this is what the eyewitness is saying, and says this then turned into a hostage situation. what we also know at this point in time, according to seven networks, cnn's affiliate on the ground in sydney, is that civil aviation is shut in terms of the airspace above sydney. shut down r

the new south wales police commissioner and the new south wales premier will be updating us exactly on what's going on. we'll bring you those comments when the media conference is due to kick off in the next five minutes or so. >> matt taylor, thank you for developing us on that story out of australia. appreciate it. >>> and we'll focus on europe as we get the headlines. ecb members against the low interest rates have had an effect and the negative deposit rate is the lowest possible rate. he also sees no prospect for more interest rate moves and the ecb's goal is not to have unified interest rates across the eurozones. he also said it's not the goal of the ecb to have uniform interest rates in europe. so focus on how the ecb will revive the european economy, nowotny says there's been some effect on the low interest rates but won't have much in the future. wilfred? >>> thank you for that, seema. we have a bit of strength in european markets today coming during the session. we started flat and are now at half a percent. what is the reason? well, possibly some of the comments out of mr.

now, i do intend to go to sydney early in the afternoon to be further briefed by new south wales police and other security agencies. i also intend to say thank you as best i can in person to new south wales police officers and others involved in this appalling incident. i'll do more media there and i'll take questions at that time. when we do have a better idea of exactly what has happened. plainly, there are lessons to be learned. and we will thoroughly examine this incident to decide what lessons can be learned. but i do -- in the hours immediately after the conclusion of the siege offer these words of comfort to those caught up in it and reassurance to the australian people. >> that was the prime minister of australia, tony abbott, giving remarks, talking about the siege in sydney earlier today saying the shooter, the gunman was a politically motivated -- which i believe is obvious to anyone who's been following this story. evan perez has been in touch with his contacts all day. law enforcement right now combing over the crime scene, everything they can find in the lindt cafe. what e

we recently in september had the australian prime minister and police officials from new south wales d sydney in new york to meet with the joint terrific task force in new york. the australians have set up a similar situation with local and federal police just for these types of situations. >> it's important to remember as you were talking about if there were any american there. it was:45 when this started. a coffee shop in the business district not far from the sydney opera, some big world banks are located nearby. some people coming in and out to get their coffee when this went down. >> evan perez, thanks so much. we're going to explore this social media aspect to the standoff because over the last 17 hours there were messages going back and forth on social media. and this is the man who was behind this was also a guy who had a social media presence that authorities have been watching for some time, too. that's just ahead. will that be all, sir? thank you. ordering chinese food is a very predictable experience. i order b14. i get b14. no surprises. buying business internet, on the o

the police commissioner in new south wales held a news conference, andrew scipione. he said they do not want this to be violent. they do not want bloodshed. in saying that, we saw a number of police snipers get into police. there are hundreds of police here. not just stopping people from getting in, but clearly handling the situation and making sure that they can negotiate and keep dialogue open with the armed gunman and hopefully get these hostages out safely. >> anna, this is not happening in a complete vacuum as far as terrorist concerns go. the alert level was raised from medium to high this fall. there were terror raids across the country. tell us what's been going on. >> reporter: absolutely. australia is part of the war on terror. obviously when the united states launched the campaign against isis, they called for allies. australia was one of the first to step up. there are hundreds of australian troops there in iraq training the kurdish forces as well as iraqi forces helping them so they can fight the war against isis. the australian fighter jets involved in

thank you. >>> so there you heard the police commissioner of new south wales and the premier of new south wales give the information of what's going on. two of the hostages confirmed dead, the hostage holder, the hostage taker himself killed in this operation. there were 17 hostages. the law enforcement authorities say 17 hostages, five had earlier escaped that left 12. four of those hostages are now in the hospital. one law enforcement official also in the hospital. he was shot in the face according to the police commissioner. tom fuentes was listening to this. i know you worked with closely with the australians. it looks like some of the questions now will focus in, did the police do the right thing in going in 16 hours in. something triggered that movement that resulted in the end of the siege. but also resulted in obviously, the deaths of two of the hostages and the hostage holder. >> right, wolf. their procedures are very similar to what we using u.s. and what the fbi used. i was an on scene commander in situations like this. what you have is the commander that's right at the scene i

this 50-year-old man who was very much on the radar not only of new south wales police, the area where sydney is yo but on e judiciary's radar, he had convictions of sending hate mail to the families of the soldiers that had been killed in afghanistan, he had appealed those convictions, just failed in those convictions, could that have been the trigger for this attack. he had been charged with more serious offenses of being an accessory to murder of his ex wife. and sexual offenses dating back a decade. a man very much known to police and very much on their radar. how was he able to walk into a central sydney cafe and take as many hostages as he did on a busy monday morning? should he have been on bail like he was, should he have been more closely watched by authorities in australia? those are questions that will be asked in the coming days. police press conference a couple of moments ago, they said they are tretting this as a critical -- treating this as a critical incident but not speculating as to what his direct motivations may have been or indeed at the moment as to why this could

opposite channel 7, and the new south wales parliament - that has been evacuated as well as the nearby supreme court building. the sydney opera house is close to the sydney harbour area. those that saw what happened have been talking. this man didn't want to be identified and described what he saw as he passed the door to the cafe while he was making a delivery. >> when i first ran into the building a lady was staring, knocking on the doors. i did three loads upstairs into the lindt building, on the third run i wondered what her problem was, why she didn't go somewhere else, and obviously the gunman or the alleged offender opened a bag up and revealed a gun and she ran down the stairs saying "gun, gun, gun, gun in the blue bag", i saw the gun, yes. he was tall, probably late 40s. had a long-seized white shirt on. he was calm. he was pacing, looking out into the lift well. and i could see people and customers sitting at the tables. they were still drinking. i'm not sure how alert they were to what was going on, what was going to unfold. >> the australian prime minister tony abbott made

now, i do intend to go to sydney early in the afternoon to be further briefed by new south wales policend other security agencies. i also intend to say thank you as best i can in person to new south wales police officers and others involve in this appalling incident. i'll do more media then and take questions at this time when we do have a better idea of exactly what has happened. plainly there are lessons to be learned and we will thoroughly examine this incident to decide what lessons can be learned. ifs b but i do want now, in the immediate hours after the siege, to offer these words of comfort to those caught up in it and reassurance to the australia people. >> that was australia prime minister tony abbott addressing the siege in sydney. officials saying motivations were political but not specifying what those motivations were. the siege happen in a coffee shop with 17 people. in september australia raised its terrorism alert level from medium to high giving police stronger power to fight extremist groups like isis. 70 australia citizens are fighting in iraq or syria and estimated 1

. >> the new south wales parliament was evacuated as well as the supreme court building. other major buildings nearby include the world famous sydney opera house around 200 meters away. we have live pictures coming to us from sydney. the police are guarding that entrance to the cafe. andrew thomas has the latest. >> they're saying that the name of the hostage taker is man haron monis. he is an iranian immigrant to australia. he has in the past been convicted of sending hate letters to families of dead soldiers killed in afghanistan. more recently he has been charged with the murder of his ex-wife, and he has also been charged with a number of sexual crimes that date back about a deck kate. now i say it's unconfirmed as to whether this man is the man holding hostages inside the cafe in the center of sydney, but this is what local media in australia are disclosing the police source as saying. the background of the story, the siege, and the event of monday here in sydney. this woman is running from the scene of a hostage taking in sydney. a number of people have escaped from

we just heard as part of this law enforcement briefing in new south wales the s.w.a.t. team the tactics changed. once they heard gunfire, you know, that's when they went inside of that cafe and i'm wondering if you thought they waited too long to go in? >> actually there's multiple indicators of good progress in negotiation. no indication of violence or anything that would give you any indication negotiations were not progressing. my guess it was more a spontaneous eruption of violence that could have happened one of several ways. perhaps hostages were trying to run away or do something but orchestrated the panic and the fear that he's losing control. the other option might be an attempt to provoke this into a suicide by cop. so i do not think we're talking about a preplanned tactical operation. >> so, as they are heading inside of the cafe and they don't entirely know what they are walking into, given that kind of a situation do you think that they are intending to capture or to kill at that point the hostage taker? >> the tactical team fires or attempts to fire at the

>> as you said, he's very well-known to the new south wales police. we don't believe he was under surveillance. he had a personal website which was pulled down overnight which sort of declared that he had only really converted to islam in the last month. there has been a number of suspects, 16 men who have been monitored closely following some terror raids in sydney last month and he definitely was not one of those 16. >> he was not one of those. okay. can you confirm for us anything about the number of casualties? we're getting some conflicting information right now. what are you reporting? >> we're reporting one, the gunman himself has been killed and one other hostage. but police we've spoken to are unclear on how seriously injured some of the others are. it all happened, sort of an unplanned attack, a number of hostages ran out of the building this morning in the early hours about 2:00 a.m. and police weren't quite prepared for what was going to happen. >> do we know if he released these hostages or if they manage to escape? >> the indications are

but new south wales police are saying that these negotiators are the best in the business. they are, according to senior officers, the best in the world. interesting to note that senior police officers here are adamant that they are confident that this will end peacefully. but, of course, no one knows. there still remains a very volatile and potentially dangerous situation, and i think the australian prime minister tony abbott did sum up the mood of a nation and people further afield when he talked about how terrifying it must be for those hostages to go into nighttime. we're approaching the dark hours here in australia, having been held hostage for more than 12 hours. so one can only guess at the privations, the fear, the panic, the terror that's going through their minds. but safe to say, australian police are here in vast numbers, many heavily armed and those negotiators are going about their business as well. >> phil, thanks very much indeed. phil mercer in sydney. a reporter for channel 7 news was at the scene, because their offices actually overlook that cafe. he told

i want to say to their families first that everyone in new south wales stands by you. tand beside you today. they stand beside you tomorrow. they stand you beside you forever. i want to pay tribute to the men and women of the new south wales police who saved many, many lives over the past 24 hours. and risked their lives in doing so. i also want to pay tribute to all of the other emergency workers. my thoughts also remain with the hostages who have been injured. they will be provided support. we are -- today once we brief, we must work, we must talk to our families. but i say to everyone in new south wales, today we must come together like never before. we are strong together. we will get through this. we will get through this. the events we have seen have shaken us, but they do not take us down. >> good morning. thank you. ladies and gentlemen, i'd like to now confirm and -- it's not time to speculate. we'll work through the facts and we will apprise you as soon as we can. at this time, we actually need to think about the hostages. the premier has already indicated tho

also a new south wales police officer was shot in the process, not giving us an update on that person'sut that person was not killed in the siege of the chocolate shop in sydney. we will continue to cover that story and talk about the implications with the rest of the days broadcast, so we hope you will stay with us as we cover that big story out of sydney. more "bloomberg west" tomorrow. ♪ >> from bloomberg world headquarters in midtown manhattan, i am matt miller, in for mark crumpton. this is "bottom line," the this this andf economics with a mainstream perspective. to our viewers in the united states and those of you joining us from around the world, we have full coverage of the stocks in stories making headlines. senior markets corresponded julie hyman with the price war over the hottest toys on the market. peter cook monitors another deadline for obamacare enrollment. and we begin with shelby holliday.

but ambulance australia here in new south wales say some people have been transported to the hospital. just taking you back, this entire scene began shortly before 10:00 a.m. today. to set the scene, we're in a beautiful part of the city, the center of the financial district, the media center. this cafe, is only a block from the u.s. consulate, a short walk from the sydney opera house. and it's right near the australian reserve bank, which is basically the federal reserve of australia. so absolutely in the heart of a very dynamic and important part of the city. and a number of people were simply having a coffee when the gunman came in and the next thing they knew, they were hostages forced to put their hands up against the windows and hold up an islamic banner. police liquidly cordoned off the area. they moved with great speed and precision, i must say, and it was all done very calmly. but then here in the waning hours after about 11 of those hostages had escaped, something happened. we've heard from one report that one gunshot was fired, probably by the suspect, probably by the gunma

i'd like to thank the men and women of new south wales police were fork they've done and will continuevice. all i was doing on that monday morning was going down for a quick coffee at the lindt coffee shop after having an eye check. i've never had so much relief as when i turned the corner and saw the law enforcement waiting for me. i'm so happy to be home with my lovely wife. we thank the media and everyone who's ful and for kindness and respect. thanks so much. >> one of the hostages there that managed to run out to safety in sydney monday. >>> much more to come. greek mp's vote for a new president in a crucial ballot that could plunge the country back to crisis. this is a pip. it's part of a hershey's bar. we break it. we bite it. we sneak it. we smoosh it. we savor it. we love it. hershey's is mine, yours, our chocolate. >>> this is bbc world news. i'm geeta guru-murthy with the latest headlines. a statement by the pakistani taliban says six members carried out the peshawar school massacre and expresses no remorse for deaths of the children. >>> ten people are reported to have been

there were anti-terror raids in september across new south wales.frightening to learn that there was a plot to kidnap an australian and behead them with the is flag. a vestry location is and thoroughfare. there has been the sense that this could happen. the police a been conducting an anti-terror raid. in one sense, they were prepared for something like this to happen. we have seen that the movement has been quite swift. capital keeping their moves to themselves. they don't want to much to be given to the media. we haven't even been get -- able to get cameras near the cafe. they think that they know what they are doing and hopefully this will be resolved peacefully. that's what they were hoping for. >> thank you so much. throughout the day, we will update you on the developments. >> later on we will be talking to a principal analyst. we will talk about where this leaves australia and what this does to change the overall global risk reception at the moment. we will have that conversation. we have negotiations to obtain one of the wireless operators.

i would say that a statement in a press conference will be coming from the new south wales police., says and, more the day frequently, the deputy commissioner who has been down at the scene. police have certainly had plenty of communications with the media. they will be circumspect about beenthey say and it has asking cooperation from the media and asking that reports be very cautious and that appears to have happened. i would expect to hear something from the police very soon. >> thank you so much for giving us the latest. also davide gartenstein. have been following this situation from afar as have way. what conclusions have you been able to draw thus far? >> it's difficult to get solid conclusions right now. as the previous guest mentionedm,onis is from iran. they are adamantly a shia country. he has been filmed recently with a turban reminiscent not of sunnis but shia clerics. he has a heretical background and appears -- i claims to be an estherin black magic and allah j. -- and astrology. -- ald up a dishonest flag jihadist flag but demanded someone bring him and isis flag so

>> one appears to be middle aged with a black headband with white writing on it. >> reporter: new south walesonfirming to abc news they are responding. >> a lot of tourists are being ushered away from the opera house, the harbor side itself. they're all marshaled back toward the city end. >> we are being tested today in sydney. the police are being tested. the public is being tested. >> reporter: gloria rivera, abc news, washington. >> so many people so surprised not knowing who the hostage takers were, what their motives were. and we also know the daily telegraph has the headline, incredible headline this morning. the death called cbt attack and the headline, "the instant we changed forever." >> there are so many -- this is an ongoing situation. so many questions to be answered about what's happening there and everybody around the world keeping an eye on this and trying to find out is this the start of something else. we're in that day and age where people are thinking terrorism but you have people all over the world, places like new york, london and other major capitals and other major citi

now, i do intend to go to sydney early in the afternoon to be further briefed by new south wales policeurity agencies. i also intend to say thank you as best i can in person to new south wales police officers and others involved in this appalling incident. i'll do more media then and take questions at that time. when we do have a better idea of exactly what has happened. plainly, there are lessons to be learned and we will thoroughly examine this incident to decide what lessons can be learned. but i do want now in the hours immediately after the conclusion of the siege to offer these words of comfort to those caught up in it and reassurance to the australian people. >> and that's the australian prime minister tony abbott addressing the nation. it is about 8:30 a.m. australian time. we're going to take a quick break and pick up with "closing bell" in a couple of minutes. you used to sleep like a champ. then boom... what happened? stress, fun, bad habits kids, now what? let's build a new, smarter bed using the dualair chambers to sense your movement, heartbeat, breathing. introducing the

this is in wimbley, new south wales, australia. they were getting nearly two inches an hour. rain, wind and this. that was about 100 feet away. then let's jump over to iceland. there is no lightning strike but there is a heck of a lot of snow. don't open the window. >> it's like i think iceland should be. >> opening the windows in iceland after a snowstorm, no joke. watch what happens when she tries to open the front door. you're talking several feet of snow. you can't go anywhere. >> are you starting to feel a little claustrophobic? >> a bully's hand is stuck in -- >> a meat grinder. >> what it took to get it free. a couple of long boarders take off for a race. >> our guy with the helmet cam gets a little out of shape. >> one long-lived crash. i have the worst cold with this runny nose. i better take something. dayquill cold and flu doesn't treat your runny nose. seriously? alka-seltzer plus cold and cough fights your worst cold symptoms plus your runny nose. oh, what a relief it is. >>. >> scary sticky situations from around the world. first one comes from australia. a man

tonyt a statement from abbott, develop a statement from the new south wales premier.the latest. you are watching "first up." ♪ >> more on the election in japan. the liberal democratic party and coalition partners 13 26 seats, giving them a the two thirds majority needed to push legislation through. the pressure is now on to lift the recession and prove that abenomics will bring change. is to jpmorganio -- joining us live in the studio is the jpmorgan emerging markets strategist. i do not think it is a surprise. >> it is a little disappointing that they got less than three to six seats red >> it is being spun positively. >> let's see how the market reacts during the day. talking with traders, it was on the disappointment because they did not get as many seats. the turnout was 52%. >> lowest since world war ii. >> not the resounding mandate that abe was after. >> reportedly spent as that his right side of that stayed home the spin is that it is a silent majority that stayed at home. if you take a look at real world japan, the wages are not inflated to the point where it

now, i do intend to go to sydney early in the afternoon, to be further briefed by new south wales policend other security agencies. i also intend to say thank you, as best i can in person, to new south wales police officers and others involved in this appalling incident. i'll do more media then and i'll take questions at that time. when we do have a better idea of exactly what has happened. plainly there are lessons to be learned and we will thoroughly examine this incident to decide what lessons can be learned. but i do want, now, in the hours immediately after the conclusion of the siege, to offer these words of comfort to those caught up in it and reinsurance t rease australian people. >> australian prime minister tony abbott. i want to bring in my guest, fred burdon, former counterterrorism agent with the u.s. state department. good to have you on the program fred. what does your experience tell you about this kind of attack? it appears to be a lone wolf attack. we'll certainly learn more in the days to come and i think we heard from the prime minister there that it play have been a

. >> 9:45 local time monday, sydney, new south wales. police are called to cafe. >> a man walked into the lint store in martin place, a woman believes he has a gun and calls police. >> helicopters flying above. police are doing a lot of work from the air. >> you see hostages with their hands in the windows. >> is there writing in the window. >> 10:10 a black flag in the window. >> we started to see screams from hostages in the cafe. >> not far are government offices. >> 10:30 surrounding buildings are evacuated. >> we just got out in single file really fast. >> it is a rich environment for someone hell-bent an causing death and destruction. >> 12:30 prime minister tony abbott addresses the country. >> i could think of nothing more distressing and terrifying to be caught up in that situation and our heart goes out to those people. >> in an e-mail we are told president obama has been unbriefed on this unfolding situation in sydney. >> 4:00 p.m. the first three hostages escape. >> looks as though one staff member has managed to run outside

. >> all right so the new south wales commissioner, we played some of his comments earlier, said this was an isolated incident, a lone wolf attack, ask that the theory here? >> absolutely, we're looking on this as a lone wolf attack. he doesn't appearing to allied to too many causes. he seems to be a thoroughly unlikable person, he seemed a bit crazy but he has clearly aligned himself to the islamic state. >> okay tell us more about what you've learned in all of these hours now, about the hostage taker who is now dead? >> well, what we know is that as your report said, he's very radicalized. he sent letters to the widows of australian soldiers and he's out on bail and questions are being asked as to how he can be out on bail when he's obviously going to be like this, being accessory to the murder of his ex wife. >> maybe this gets us to a broader point you can help us with. how are leaders describing the problem of awnts fightin austrag in iraq and syria? >> our leaders are standing shoulder to shoulder with yours and it's very much the same message, you know? we're standing up for wh

too new south wales police. the local police force here in sydney has said in the last ten minutes officially that the seen is over. we also ask them to confirm that the man that many in the media is saying was the hostage taker, a man haron monis, the police have not confirmed that name but they also said that you're not wrong. he was convicted of sending hateful messages, letters to families of australian soldiers who had been killed in afghanistan. more recently he has been charged with being an accessory for the murder of his ex-wife. he has also been charged with sexual offenses that date back more than ten years. we aren't sure it's him, but the new south wales police, when we put that name to them, man haron monis, it's not an incorrect name. >> it was not clear how hostages were released, a short while before the final cafe we saw more hostages coming through the door. >> let me give a quick run down of the events as we understand them. the siege began at 9:45. it was peak time. we don't know how many ho

there is more from the new south wales lease commissioner -- police commissioner. >> certainly, theywill be working with us to assist. the one thing that i can say is if people are being contacted by hostages, particularly the media , we would ask that you would put those people and ask them to ensure that the manning side speaks to police and trains negotiators, who can resolve this situation -- that the man inside speaks to police and trained negotiators, who can resolve this situation. >> for the latest on the situation, let's bring in kristin edwards -- in christian edwards. >> the police are being rightly tightly -- tight-lipped. the fact that they are waiting out the gunman suggests there has been, if not a breakthrough in negotiations, a little bit of to and fro. it suggests an endgame. >> what more do we know, what details are there about the gunman himself and what he wants, exactly? >> some photos emerged almost by chance. you can clearly see images of this character. we have no idea who he is or what he wants. i think the head of australia's secret service suggests that, i

and the premiere of the state of new south wales saw a press conference. the message is for sydney to go about their schedule. now it's 1:00 in the morning in australia, so relatively quiet right now. we simply don't know what is going on, a, in the mind of the hostage taker, if he has any plans inside that cafe. and b, the police who have their weapons trained on this cafe. there are a lot of people ready to jump in to action if necessary. they may have their own plans to take the cafe overnight. frankly, i don't think anybody is going to go on the press conference and give us aheads up on that. this siege could go on for a long time. even if he knows it's not going to go on that long, he would hardly say that at a press conference. just because it's quiet right now. it has been for some hours, it doesn't mean that it's not going to suddenly erupt and come to a conclusion. but the official line from the police and authorities here in australia is that they'll waste this one out. no one has been hurt so far. they want to keep it that way. they're determine

new south wales. these are the areas we'll probably see bad weather continue.specially in and around brisbane. likely to hit saturday. now the extended forecast. >>> we'd like to remind you of the lead story this hour. police in hong kong are preparing to remove the barricades at a major pro democracy demonstration site on thursday. they say it will start the operation shortly. despite the warn withing, thousands of protesters are gathering in the area. some may try to remain at the site and resist the police action. now authorities announced earlier this week that they will remove the protest er tents. the eviction could come thursday morning local time. police plan to work with the bus operator to clear the area following a court order. despite the plan, several thousand protesters gathered on wednesday at the site. removing the barricades will fuel anger further. i hope every citizen stays here. >> they have come prepared with helmets and protective gear for possible clashes. the activists have been staging sit-ins for more than two months. they are calling

his funeral was held in his hometown in new south wales. >> i still can't believe i'm hear saying my final goodbyes. even though you're my little brother you have taught me so much. you have given me confidence, strength. you supported me and gave me a strong desire to succeed. >> reporter: the service was broadcast around australia and many fans watched from the sydney cricket ground where hughes suffered the fateful injury. after making his international debut in 2009, hughes played 26 test matches for united states. manaustralia. many of them along cricket captain and friend michael cla clark. >> we must play on. rest in peace, my little brother. i'll see you out in the middle. [applause] >> his father gregory was in tears afters he helps carry the coffin after the service. >> a young sportsman cut down just as his life and career was starting to flourish. richard park, al jazeera. >> and you can find much more about that and everything else that we've been covering on our website www.aljazeera.com. and on the right-hand side you can also see hour three colleagues are still in pri

however, the commissioner of police here in the state of new south wales saying they are not concerned about other locations at this point, and that their main priority and main focus is on securing the release of those hostages from that cafe site. they also say they're not going to be speculating on the motive behind this incident. that's the latest from sydney. back to you. >> and more breaking news right now, a completely different hostage situation. this one in brussels, belgium, where four armed hostage takers have holed up in an apartment. it is not clear how many hostages there are. at this point, police don't think it is terror related. instead they say they believe it is a personal matter. authorities set up a wide perimeter and cleared everyone away from the scene. we will pass along updates when we have them. >>> breaking overnight, a manhunt is over in alabama. three escaped inmates are now back in jail. 23-year-old da marcus wood ward was caught. he with justin gordon and jameel cobert started yelling for help at 2:00 a.m. on sunday and one of them began vomiting. a jaile

. >> criminologist vince hurley is a former negotiator with the new south wales police and said there is no need for an increase in concern about terrorism. >> it wasn't a hard target, it wasn't the upper house, it wasn't the bridge, it was a cafe, so i don't think that it was a terrorist related incident at all. >> many details would emerge about the siege and whether any further change to security laws will be made because of it. al jazeera, sydney. >> cuba has released a u.s. government contractor five years after he was jailed on the island. he was arrested in 2009 for smuggling in band communications equipment to cuba. an official said he was freed on humanitarian grounds at the request of the u.s. his family reported earlier this year that the 66-year-old's health was worsening. >> african leaders are calling on western countries to intervene in libya, warning violence could destabilize neighboring nations. there has been chaos in the last months in libya, rival governments competing for power as fighters from have launched an offensive to seize major oil facilities in the east

tonight, the new south wales premier offered this reassurance. >> the values we held dear yesterday we hold dear today. democracy and harmony. these defined us yesterday. they will define us today. they will define us tomorrow. >> reporter: but today, in this long, violent standoff, those values were put to the test. i'm david wright for "nightline" in sydney. >>> up next, from sam smith to meghan trainor, the stars always come out for the jingle ball. along with one very famous voice. we're behind the scenes with elvis duran. >>> and later on "nightline," an interview about "the interview." james franco and seth rogen taking on the hacking scandal surrounding their new movie. my name's louis, and i quit smoking with chantix. i had tried to do it in the past. i hadn't been successful. quitting smoking this time was different because i got a prescription for chantix. along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. the fact that it reduced the urge to smoke helped me get that confidence that i could do it. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or