Sydney Café Siege: Hostage Taker Reportedly Demands ISIS Flag, Meeting With Tony Abbott

As the siege at Lindt Chocolat Café in Sydney's central financial district enters its ninth hour, several local media outlets reported that they had been contacted by the hostages, claiming that the armed assailant had at least two demands -- an Islamic State group flag and a phone call with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott.

According to Channel 10, the third media house to be contacted by hostages, the unidentified gunman demanded that an ISIS flag be brought to the café, raising concerns that the latest incident could be the first instance of ISIS sympathizers in the Western world heeding the militant group's recent call to conduct terrorist acts in their own countries. However, the identity of the hostage taker is not yet known. Meanwhile, the reason behind the attacker’s demand for a meeting with Abbott is still not confirmed.

9NEWS, a local media outlet, earlier reported that it had been contacted by two hostages and their calls were passed on to police. According to the report, the hostages made contact at the demand of the gunman. According to Sky News Australia, the hostage taker has claimed to have four bombs -- two inside the café and two in the financial district.

“I won’t clarify any operation tactics at the moment. It is really important to remember that this is ongoing, that we still have people who are being held. We still have a person that we are dealing with,” Catherine Burn, the New South Wales Police deputy commissioner, said in a statement obtained by The Guardian, confirming that five people have been released so far.

“We have been in contact throughout the day in various forms and it’s an important part of our negotiation that we do not talk about some of the tactics or information that is being passed,” Burn added.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has reportedly confirmed that an Indian national could be among the hostages held inside the Sydney café.

“There is some information that one of our Indian IT persons is there. Our external affairs minister is in touch with the embassy and as the situation develops further, we will take whatever steps need to be taken," Indian Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu was quoted by NDTV, a local media outlet, as saying.