It began at 9:24 a.m. local time, when an armed man took 17 customers and staff hostage at Lindt Café in Sydney, Australia. After more than 15 hours of failed negotiations, armed police stormed the site, attempting to rescue the hostages. At 2:35 a.m., Sydney police declared the crisis over.
Two people, including the gunman, died, and three were seriously wounded.
The man allegedly behind the “Sydney Siege” is Man Haron Monis, a 49-year-old who identifies himself as a “Muslim cleric and peace activist.” He is currently on bail facing dozens of charges of indecent and sexual assault.
Twitter users not only reported live updates surrounding the hostage crisis, but were also quick to criticize ridesharing company Uber for hiking its prices in the area (a decision the company quickly backpedaled on) and tourists for taking selfies outside the café.
Read a roundup of Tweets that went viral, thanks to the hashtag #SydneySiege.
https://twitter.com/Censored31/status/544528837208715264
9 News confirms numbers: Two dead (including the gunman), 3 critically injured #sydneysiege #SydneyCafe pic.twitter.com/w3pehXxcYe
— Rui Delgado (@rui) December 15, 2014
Sydney siege is over. More details to follow.
— NSW Police Force (@nswpolice) December 15, 2014
#SydneySiege: Latest video of hostages escaping.https://t.co/Fx9OLtSVmn
— ??? (@Som3aNada) December 15, 2014
Gunman in #Sydneysiege identified as Muslim cleric and activist unaffiliated with an organization or party: http://t.co/8WijNL2ZRJ
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) December 15, 2014
https://twitter.com/missxmourad/status/544399649025433601
Police confirm live ammunition has been used, escaped hostages total now about 13 http://t.co/xheuclMCmj #sydneysiege
— Daily Mail Australia (@DailyMailAU) December 15, 2014
Meet the #Sydneysiege gunman: http://t.co/LMEo4dEowa As I said before, chance for world leaders to say Islam isn't linked to terrorism.
— Sreemoy Talukdar (@sreemoytalukdar) December 15, 2014
#SYDNEYSIEGE: Police storming #Lindt Cafe, paramedics on scene http://t.co/kJdiVv0nB9 pic.twitter.com/Ny7rYKuH2g
— RT (@RT_com) December 15, 2014
Lots of bangs, hostages out, no sign of shooter #SydneySiege pic.twitter.com/6O4P6AMxd1
— Simon Crerar (@simoncrerar) December 15, 2014
'Want me to shoot you too?' #sydneysiege gunman asks man before walking into cafe http://t.co/eHB2gCGJlS pic.twitter.com/pN9Y1oXpTB
— The Independent (@Independent) December 15, 2014
MAP: A gunman continues to hold staff and customers hostage at a cafe in Sydney #sydneysiege http://t.co/NqYcDVeDIr pic.twitter.com/Z8L8msuasJ
— BBC News Graphics (@BBCNewsGraphics) December 15, 2014
Sydney hostage crisis #sydneysiege ongoing. Thanks to friends in Israel for messages of solidarity & support. Hoping it ends w/o violence.
— Ralph King ???? (@AusAmbIsrael) December 15, 2014
Thoughts & prayers to all those who have been affected by the #SydneySiege today. Sad to see this sort of terror … pic.twitter.com/96GtrSd6De
— Nathaniel Buzolic (@natebuzz) December 15, 2014
https://twitter.com/HistoricalPics/status/544443154964152320
A crazy world we live in. A hostage crisis metres away & peoples' 1st thought is "let's take a selfie" #sydneysiege pic.twitter.com/leViTv30En
— Henry Legg (@PhysicsHenry) December 15, 2014
To the tourists taking selfies outside the #SydneySiege – how would you like to be in that café? pic.twitter.com/Cc5bOysMjg
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) December 15, 2014
#SYDNEYSIEGE: 5 hostages escape from #Lindt Cafe, more trapped, police in contact with gunman http://t.co/m51P8dUPhB https://t.co/hMQ7clAmHS
— RT (@RT_com) December 15, 2014
#sydneysiege Update:
-5 hostages have escaped
-"No one has been injured” per @nswpolice http://t.co/aFHirytbFHhttps://t.co/Byh8670MfK— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) December 15, 2014
Ultra capitalism backflip – #Uber rethinks fee hike amid #Sydneysiege http://t.co/Rt4dZZUXat pic.twitter.com/QpFrfwjMaD
— SBS News (@SBSNews) December 15, 2014
Bill Shorten on #sydneysiege: "Australians are shocked, but we wont be shaken" pic.twitter.com/NhrTeA6ha3
— 10 News First (@10NewsFirst) December 15, 2014
.@chriskkenny talks about leaving the cafe at the heart of the #sydneysiege moments before the hostage situation http://t.co/VIv2LL86YK
— BBC World Service (@bbcworldservice) December 15, 2014
https://twitter.com/KhaledBeydoun/status/544337383215226880
REPORTS:
Up to 40 hostages.
4 hours and counting.
Zero contact with gunman.
'Very disturbing' #sydneysiege http://t.co/OHIzG8YDkA— NEWS CENTER Maine (@newscentermaine) December 15, 2014
MT @mashable #Uber intros surge pricing during #sydneysiege – http://t.co/ypP0wMtOON pic.twitter.com/kbPubroomX
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) December 15, 2014
Infographic: The flag being shown in Martin Place, as compared to the flag used by IS and others. #SydneySiege pic.twitter.com/rMMU28danL
— The Sydney Morning Herald (@smh) December 15, 2014
Sydney Opera House evacuated, concourse deserted http://t.co/NMbuLCimKV #SydneySiege (via @cberkman) pic.twitter.com/QYlOU0REVw
— BuzzFeed Australia (@BuzzFeedOz) December 15, 2014
US evacuated Consulate in Sydney after #sydneysiege. Emergency warning to U.S. citizens urging them to "maintain high level of vigilance".
— Jon Williams (@WilliamsJon) December 15, 2014
The PM's office releases a statement about #sydneysiege. http://t.co/7NdqPYhwcY pic.twitter.com/jeYdlwywO7
— ABC News (@abcnews) December 15, 2014
Why are no network news stations playing this #BREAKING news from #sydneysiege ?
— Kimberly Willingham Hubbard ? (@kimiwillingham) December 15, 2014
No US network is carrying coverage of #sydneysiege right now. Wow. #AsleepAtTheSwitch
— James Robert Carroll (@JRCarrollNews) December 15, 2014
This story has been updated to reflect the latest casualty numbers.