Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Tuesday police were treating a deadly siege in the southern city of Melbourne as an "act of terrorism" after a claim by the Islamic State group that one of its fighters was the gunman responsible.
Police shot dead gunman Yacqub Khayre on Monday after he held a woman hostage inside an apartment building in Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city.
Police confirmed on Tuesday that Khayre, who was acquitted of a plot to attack a Sydney army base in 2009, had shot a man dead in the foyer of the building.
"This terrorist attack by a known criminal, a man who was only recently released on parole, is a shocking, cowardly crime," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told reporters in the capital, Canberra.
"It is a terrorist attack and it underlines the need for us to be constantly vigilant, never to be deterred, always defiant, in the face of Islamist terrorism," he said.
Victoria state Police Commissioner Graham Ashton said police were still investigating after Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack via its Amaq news agency.
"We're aware of them having claimed responsibility, but then they always tend to jump up and claim responsibility every time something happens so we note that that has happened," he said.
Amaq said the attack was launched because of Australia's membership in a U.S.-led coalition fighting against the militant Islamist group in Syria and Iraq.
Police were also investigating a telephone call made to the newsroom of Australian TV broadcaster Seven Network during the siege. Seven reported that a male caller said the attack was related to Islamic State.
Ashton said Khayre, an 29-year-old Australian of Somali heritage, had a long criminal history and was on parole at the time of the attack.
He did not specify the charges related to Khayre's parole. Khayre was acquitted of a plot to attack Sydney's Holsworthy Barracks in 2009. Three other men were convicted.
Ashton said evidence collected from a raid on the home that Khayre lived in with his mother indicated he likely acted alone and that the threat from this attack was now over.
Khayre arranged to meet a female escort at a block of serviced apartments in the beachside Melbourne suburb of Brighton on Monday, and then killed a staff member when he arrived, Ashton said.
After holding the woman hostage for several hours, Khayre burst out of the building firing at police, who shot back and killed him. The woman was rescued unhurt, but three police officers suffered non-life threatening gunshot wounds.
Australia, a staunch ally of the United States, has been on heightened alert for attacks by home-grown militants returning from fighting in the Middle East, or their supporters, since 2014. Police have foiled several major plots in recent years.
In December 2014, a gunman killed one hostage during a 17-hour siege at a popular Sydney cafe. Another hostage was killed by fragments of a bullet fired by police who stormed the cafe and killed the gunman, who was not affiliated to any militant groups and acted alone.
Six people were arrested over a plan to set off bombs in Melbourne on Christmas Day last year.
Reuters
Tue Jun 06 2017
Police are pictured outside the Buckingham Serviced Apartments in Brighton in Melbourne, Australia, June 6, 2017 after police on Monday shot dead Yacqub Khayre after he held a woman hostage. - AP/Julian Smith/via REUTERS
Laporan interim disiapkan secepat mungkin
Menteri Pertahanan, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin memaklumkan, Laporan interim berhubung nahas helikopter Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) di Pangkalan TLDM Lumut, Perak ketika menjalani Latihan Raptai sempena Sambutan Hari Ulang Tahun TLDM Ke-90 akan disediakan secepat mungkin.
KPM serah siasatan guru dipukul rakan sekerja kepada polis
Kementerian Pendidikan menyerahkan kepada polis untuk menyiasat kes seorang guru lelaki dipercayai memukul rakan sekerjanya di sebuah sekolah rendah di daerah Kemaman, Terengganu, Ahad lepas.
Tesla guna teknologi purba untuk selesai masalah Cybertruck
Rivet ialah teknologi yang telah digunakan oleh manusia sejak Zaman Gangsa lebih 4,000 tahun yang lalu.
Representasi mohon maaf dibuat atas cadangan Peguam Negara - Isham Jalil
Cadangan tersebut dibuat kepada peguam Isham beberapa minggu lalu, sebelum beliau bersetuju memandangkan kos guaman yang agak tinggi.
Gaza Freedom Flotilla: Ada kemungkinan lokasi pelepasan kapal terpaksa ditukar - FFC
Terdapat kemungkinan pelabuhan bagi pelepasan kapal yang terlibat dalam misi Break the Siege of Gaza Freedom Flotilla terpaksa ditukar.
AWANI Ringkas: Semua 10 mayat dihantar ke Hospital Permaisuri Bainun Ipoh
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
Pantau Belanjawan: Meningkatkan kecekapan, produktiviti perkhidmatan kesihatan
Pantau Belanjawan membawa perkembangan terkini tentang aplikasi perkhidmatan komunikasi kesihatan, MedPlanner.
Johor laksana sunat istisqa' dan khutbah khas
Kerajaan negeri memandang serius keadaan kemarau yang berlaku di beberapa tempat dalam negara khususnya di negeri Johor.
Jongkong emas bernilai RM585 juta dijual hasil perlombongan di Tawau
Kerajaan Sabah juga telah menerima lima peratus royalti ke atas hasil jualan emas mentah berjumlah RM23.96 juta daripada lombong emas itu.
Pengarah syarikat gagal patuhi syarat lesen cetak al-Quran didenda RM8,000
Sebelum menjatuhkan hukuman, Majistret Farah Azura menasihatkan tertuduh supaya lebih peka dengan sensitiviti berhubung pencetakan al-Quran.