Isis claims responsibility for Melbourne siege that left two people dead

Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the shooting and hostage situation that left two men dead in Melbourne overnight.

The gunman, named by police on Tuesday as Yacqub Khayre, took a woman hostage in an apartment building in Brighton, 11km south-east of Melbourne’s central business district, on Monday night.

Police shot him dead after he emerged from the complex with a sawn-off shotgun, shooting at officers. They then discovered the body of another man in the foyer of the apartment block.

Three police officers were shot during the siege, although their injuries were not life-threatening. Two police suffered hand injuries and a third was injured in the face and neck area.

The hostage had been called to the apartment through an escort service on Monday, police said. On Tuesday police said the woman was traumatised but not hurt. The dead man had been working at the serviced apartments.

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Isis published a statement via a news agency linked to the group, saying the attack had been carried out by one of its soldiers.

“The attack in Melbourne, Australia, was carried out by a soldier of the Islamic State in response to the call for targeting the subjects of the coalition states,” said a statement published on the group’s Amaq news agency and translated by Reuters.

The Seven Network reported the gunman called the organisation saying “This is for IS [Islamic State]. This is for al-Qaida.”

That appeared to conflict with Isis’s claim of direct responsibility.

Victoria police confirmed on Tuesday morning they were treating the siege as an act of terrorism. The state’s chief police commissioner, Graham Ashton, said it was still unclear whether it was a planned or spontaneous attack.

Ashton said police had not yet established whether Isis was directly involved. He cautioned against placing too much faith in Isis’s claim of responsibility.

“We know that Islamic State have jumped in and claimed responsibility, but we also know they do that at the drop of a hat,” Ashton said.

The New York Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi, who has written extensively on Isis claims, said on Twitter the Melbourne sequence of events appeared to fit a pattern where supporters of the terrorist movement took matters into their own hands without necessarily having direct instructions from Isis.

Ashton confirmed the identity of the attacker as Khayre, who was previously charged over an alleged terrorism plot targeting the Holsworthy army barracks in Sydney.

He was acquitted. But Khayre, whom Ashton described as having an extensive criminal history, had been behind bars for other offences. He was released in November and was on parole at the time of Monday’s attack.

Ashton said Khayre had a “counter-terrorism background” going back to 2009, but said law enforcement had not currently considered him a heightened risk.

“We have hundreds of people that we need to try and keep an eye on and we do that in conjunction with the commonwealth intelligence agencies and the Australian federal police,” Ashton told the ABC. “He wasn’t someone who we had heightened concerns about at the moment.”

Ashton said two of his officers had required surgery after being injured during the siege. “We’ve got three officers wounded at the scene in the gunfight with this individual, fortunately they look like they’re OK,” he told Channel Seven.

The Channel Seven reporter Paul Dowsley reported that his newsroom had been called by a man claiming to be linked to the siege. “My colleague could hear a woman screaming in the background,” he said.

Police arrived at the Buckingham serviced apartments in Bay Street about 4pm after receiving reports of an explosion. “It’s believed he has a woman inside with him who he won’t allow to leave,” a police spokeswoman said at the time. The police attempted to negotiate with the man.

A Brighton resident, Gemma, was on the corner of Hillcrest Avenue and Bay Street when she heard gunshots. “They were really fast-paced, quick, lots of them and we ran,” she told the Australian Associated Press.

By 6pm, police had shot Khayre dead after he emerged from one of the apartments and opened fire on them.

Police did not communicate with Khayre during the standoff, said a deputy police commissioner, Andrew Crisp.

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“Just before 6pm whilst police resources were in the vicinity of the serviced apartments a male has exited one of the services apartments and began firing at police members,” he said. “Police members returned fire and as a result the man who exited the serviced apartments was fatally shot. As a result of the gunfire three police members were injured.”

While the initial reports were of an explosion, Crisp said it was likely the explosion was likely to have been gunfire.

Victoria’s premier, Daniel Andrews, praised the work of officers and the Victorian police, who “sacrifice so much to keep us safe”.

How events unfolded

4pm Police respond to a call about an explosion at an apartment building in Brighton. They start trying to negotiate with a man inside an apartment, who was holding a woman against her will.

5.41pm Seven Network Melbourne newsroom gets a call from a woman who says she’s involved in a hostage situation. A man takes over the phone call to say: “This is for IS, this is for al-Qaida.” Seven calls police to report the call.

6pm A gunman leaves the building and opens fire on police, injuring three of them. Police fire back and kill him. They find a dead man in the foyer, he appears to have been shot. The woman is freed. Two police officers are taken to hospital with gunshot wounds, a third is treated at the scene.