2014 Sydney hostage crisis
After the siege began, a staged exclusion zone was established with thousands of people evacuated from nearby buildings, including from the floors above the café. The Sydney Opera House was evacuated after a suspicious package was found; however, reports were unconfirmed by police. The US Consulate General in Sydney, located in Martin Place, was also evacuated. Some Sydney schools were put in "white level lockout" due to the hostage situation, which meant that no school group was permitted to leave the school grounds.
2012 Sydney anti-Islam film protests
"The Australian" reported that several of the protestors were carrying the black flags of an organisation described as al-Qa'ida sympathisers. An unnamed Muslim leader was quoted in the paper as saying that the protest had been hijacked by a group known as "Sixth Pillar", the name being a reference to the "Five Pillars of Islam" with jihad being claimed by some to be the "sixth pillar of Islam". The group may be linked to the controversial Sydney Sheikh Feiz Mohammed.