Three people have been confirmed dead after gunfire ended a 16-hour hostage siege at a Sydney cafe.
Police say the dead include the gunman and two of the 17 hostages. Four others were wounded.
New South Wales state police Commissioner Andrew Scipione.
"I can indicate to you that we have accounted for, at this stage, 17 hostages. That includes the five that escaped yesterday and a number that have been caught up, some with traumatic injuries, some with medical conditions. We have, as you have reported, two deceased among the hostages and six that were uninjured. We also have a lone gunman who has been shot and killed and we have a male police officer who has been injured as a result of a gunshot wound to the face."
The two dead hostages have been identified as a 34-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman.
A police robot was also sent into the building, but no explosives were found.
Local media identified the gunman as 50-year-old Iranian-born Man Haron Monis, who was once prosecuted for sending offensive letters to families of Australian troops killed in Afghanistan.
Monis had been out on bail on charges of being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife, and on sexually assaulting a woman in 2002.
