Sydney hostage taker reportedly demands ISIS flag as some captives escape

Five people have fled from a cafe in the heart of Sydney where a dramatic hostage taking is unfolding Monday, CNN reports. But an unknown number of people remain in the cafe, held by at least one armed hostage taker. Hundreds of police officers have shut down a usually bustling area in Australia's most populous city amid the crisis. Chilling images from local media showed people, believed to be hostages, with their hands pressed against the glass of the Lindt Chocolate Cafe in Sydney's central business district. Footage showed them holding up a black flag with Arabic writing on it that reads: "There is no God but God and Mohammed is the prophet of God." Three people who were seen running out of the cafe "are now out of the building and they are now with police," said New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn, declining to give details about whether they escaped or were let go.