Two victims of the deadly siege in Sydney were being remembered at private memorial services, a week after a gunman took them hostage inside a city cafe.

Australia’s prime minister has said the deadly Sydney cafe siege may have been preventable, as the chorus of critics demanding to know why the gunman was free on bail despite a string of violent charges grew louder.

The Sydney cafe gunman was once on the Australian national security agency’s watchlist – but dropped off it years ago for reasons that remain unclear, prime minister Tony Abbott has said.

She was a brilliant lawyer who taught young students how to prepare for mock trials. He was the beloved manager of a chocolate shop and cafe who was known for putting his staffers’ needs first.

Australia’s prime minister has questioned why someone with such a “long and chequered history” as Sydney siege gunman Man Horan Monis was at large in the community.

She was a brilliant lawyer who taught young students how to prepare for mock trials. He was the beloved manager of a chocolate shop and cafe who was known for putting his staffers' needs first.

An Australian TV newsreader broke down in tears during a live broadcast when she realised her connection to one of the victims of yesterday's siege at a Sydney cafe.

Three people have died after a siege in a Sydney cafe came to a dramatic end yesterday when armed police stormed the building.

Man Haron Monis was an Iranian refugee known for sending hate mail to the families of Australian soldiers killed overseas and facing several charges of sexual assault.

A number of Australian news outlets quoting local sources have reported that two people, including the hostage taker, have died in the siege of a café in central Sydney.

Several more hostages have fled the scene of the Sydney cafe siege amid the sound of gunfire and loud explosions.

At least five more hostages have fled the scene of the siege at the cafe in Sydney, Australia.