TV Building May Have Been Original Sydney Terror Target

Sydney's Channel 7 may have been the original target of Man Haron Monis last Monday.  It's a revelation that serves as an alert for security at TV and radio facilities in the States.

The Saturday Telegraph has learned Monis arrived at Martin Place early on Monday morning with the possible intention of taking hostages within the TV network’s studio during the live morning Sunrise broadcast.

Man Haron Monis

But it appears that, due to increased security at the studio following the Islamic State threat in September to behead someone in Martin Place, Monis instead rerouted his plot to the Lindt Chocolate Cafe a short distance from Channel 7 studios.  There he staged his deadly ­17-hour siege, which ended with the deaths of two innocent civilians.

A high-placed government source claims police — both the NSW State Police and the Australian Federal Police — have not ruled out that Channel 7 may have been Monis’s main target.

The shocking revelation comes as recently released Channel 7 security footage shows Monis pacing outside the Martin Place studios — known within the network as Sunrise Alley — as early as 8.30am on the morning of the siege.

“There are several things to suggest that (Monis) may have initially set his sights on Channel 7 during their live morning broadcast,” a government source told The Saturday Telegraph.

Monis had a very public and open resentment of the network.

A damning 2009 report on Today Tonight, which dubbed him a “Fake Sheik”, exposed his history of writing letters to the families of fallen soldiers. The program led directly to High Court charges about letters to war widows, and Monis was placed on a two-year good behaviour bond for the offensive letters — as was his co-accused and widow, 34-year-old Amirah Droudis, who pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting.

Soon after that report aired Monis visited Seven’s Martin Place studios on at least two occasions to hand out pro-Islamic leaflets.