"Shia Society of Victoria" also known as "Panjtan Society of Victoria" condemned the Hostage-taking in Sydney as follows:
Panjtan Society of Victoria representing the Shia Muslims of Victoria condemns this criminal act unequivocally and reiterates that such actions are denounced in whole in Islam.
We have always worked on the assumption that we have to be united in preventing any terror attacks taking place on Australia Soil.
Our Shia Muslim community expresses their full support and solidarity with the victims and their families and aspire to a peaceful resolve to this crisis.
Three people died in the hostage drama yesterday in a Sydney cafe after security forces stormed the building.
Heavy gunfire and blasts from stun grenades filled the air shortly after 2 am local time at the Lindt cafe in central Sydney, bringing to an end a siege that had lasted more than 16 hours. The 50-year-old hostage-taker was among the dead; while two hostages - a 38-year-old woman and a 34-year-old man, were the other two deceased.
On a website, now suspended, he describes himself as a convert to Sunni Islam. In his statement he expresses "allegiance" to ISIL and its leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, calling the ISIL Caliph as his "Imam".
Also in his statement, the formerly Shiite Muslim underlines that he has converted to Sunni Islam, stressing that Shiites are blasphemous people.
He also underscores that the war in Iraq is not a sectarian strife, but a war between the Muslims (i.e. ISIL) and the hypocrites.
/129