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As many as 15 hostages seized by a gunman who stormed a Sydney cafe at morning rush hour are facing a terrifying night as a siege in the centre of the city continued after dark, hours after five captives made a courageous break for freedom. Witnesses saw food prepared in the cafe's kitchen brought out to the remaining hostages, thought to number between ten and 15, as the stand-off with heavily armed police entered its twelfth hour. The drama began unfolding around 9,30 am, when a gunman entered the cafe, located in one of busiest plazas in Sydney's central business district, and pulled a shotgun from a blue carry bag and disabled the doors to the business.