Interviews

Sydney siege reflections

by Mark Rowe

The tragic end to the December 15 hostage-taking in Sydney’s Central Business District has, in many ways, left more questions than answers for the Australian government and public. So suggests Dr Tobias Feakin, Associate Fellow at the defence and security think-tank RUSI.

Despite the professionalism of the police and security agencies responding to the event, who throughout the day kept the situation under relative control and managed to keep casualties to a minimum when bringing the situation to a conclusion, there are queries about how an individual as clearly volatile as Man Haron Monis could have gone unmonitored, he suggests. For more visit the RUSI website.

And Chris Phillips says that the attack on the Lindt café at Martin Place, pictured, in Sydney highlights the need for all crowded places to have a contingency plan in case of a terrorist attack.

Speaking on behalf of Counter Terror Expo, the annual London spring exhibition and conference, Phillips, a former Police Security Co-ordinator (SECCO) said: “We have to face the reality that locations such as primary schools, shopping malls and leisure centres are all potential targets for terrorist attack today. They should all develop and rehearse an emergency response plan just as they do with fire drills.”

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