Police have mowed down an armed robber who held dozens of staff at an Apple store in Amsterdam hostage.
All hostages held at the shop in the Dutch capital's bustling Leidseplein district have now been freed, after a gunman was spotted inside the building five hours ago.
They were taken to a police station to give witness statements and access victim support.
Dutch Police admitted to stopping the gunman by hitting him with a vehicle "as he ran out".
He has now been taken to hospital and an "extensive research" of the store will now take place.
Earlier this evening police said the hostage-taker was "lying on the street" where robots were examining him for explosives.
They later confirmed the device on his chest, which looked like a bomb vest, was not active.
A police statement said at the time: "Police officers control him from a distance with firearms. The hostage is safe."
The moment the suspect was mown down by a car has been shared online.
In the clip, a man can be seen running from the Apple store before he bounces off the bonnet of a dark car.
Packs of heavily armed police officers flocked to the shop in Amsterdam's bustling Leidseplein district in response to a report made at 5.40pm this afternoon.
News of the incident first emerged on social media, where users posted a clip of the gunman holding a man around the neck and lifting a pistol repeatedly to the side of his head.
The suspect, who is seen wearing camo trousers and a black hoodie, then kicks open the glass entranceway to the store.
As the clip ends, he is seen slowly walking backwards with the hostage still under his arm.
Over the course of the night, several individuals were allowed to leave the store.
Earlier cops refused to elaborate on the number of people inside, citing security risks to the operation.
But later they announced dozens of hostages, who had been inside, had been allowed to leave.
It is still not clear exactly what the perpetrator wanted.
A witness told Dutch outlet AT5 they had to "run for my life" after hearing shots ring out.
They added: "I was standing on the zebra crossing opposite the apple store. An employee walked out in panic with a walkie-talkie, yelling.
"At that moment the penny hadn't dropped yet and I was about to cross the zebra crossing opposite the entrance to the Apple store.
"And that's when I heard gunshots inside."
Police cleared the square and asked neighbours to remain inside and not come outside to watch.
Another witness told AT5 that cops had their guns drawn as the situation unfolded this afternoon.
He said: "Police are running around with a large group. And guns towards the Apple store."
The Telegraaf reported that experts from the Dutch armed forces were on the scene providing specialist support.
Amsterdam Police have been sharing updates about the ongoing situation on their Twitter account.
They wrote: "We are currently reluctant to provide information about the situation in the Apple Store on Leidseplein so as not to disrupt our investigation and efforts there.
"We ask local residents, entrepreneurs and employees at Leidseplein not to come and look outside and to stay inside."
In an earlier statement, they said: "Update: there is someone with a firearm in/near the shop in question, the police are on site with many (specialist) units to get the situation under control."
