Watch: How the Sydney hostage situation erupted in a cafe

An apparent hostage situation is unfolding inside a chocolate shop and cafe in Australia's largest city Sydney, where several people could be seen through a window with their hands held in the air. Television footage shot through the cafe's windows shows several people with their arms in the air and hands pressed against the glass. Police say "specialist officers are attempting to make contact (with) those inside a cafe." TV footage shows two people inside the cafe holding up what appears to be a black flag with white Arabic writing on it. Zain Ali, the head of the Islamic Studies Research Unit at the University of Auckland, says it's difficult to read the message but he believes it's the Shahada, or declaration of faith, largely because a black flag with white writing in a contemporary context often contains that message.