[viepedorlella]

Ex-policeman in Philippines holds bus hostage

Officials say man, armed with automatic rifle, is demanding reinstatement



updated 1 minute ago

BREAKING NEWS

MANILA, Philippines — A dismissed policeman armed with an automatic rifle seized a bus in the Philippine capital Monday with 25 passengers aboard, most of them Hong Kong tourists, in a bid to demand his reinstatement, police said.

Six hostages, including three children, were subsequently released. Police sharpshooters took positions around the white-blue-red bus, which was parked near a downtown Manila park, and negotiations to free the remaining hostages were under way, deputy director of Manila police Alex Gutierrez said.

Two of the Hong Kong tourists, both women, were the first to be released, followed by three young children and a woman accompanying them, Manila police chief Rodolfo Magtibay said. Police had earlier reported that the tourists were from South Korea but later corrected themselves. Others on the bus included three Filipinos -- a driver, a guide and a photographer, Magtibay said.

The hostage-taker, identified as former Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza, was armed with an M16 rifle. He demanded that he be given back his job on the police force a year after he was fired, Magtibay said. Mendoza hitched a ride on the bus from the historic walled city of Intramuros and then "declared he is taking the passengers hostage" when the bus reached Jose Rizal Park alongside Manila Bay.

The area also includes the seaside U.S. Embassy and a number of hotels. The curtains on the bus windows were drawn and live TV footage showed two police negotiators walking to and from the bus and communicating with Mendoza from the window near the driver's seat.

Magtibay said they were also using the driver's cell phone to talk to Mendoza. A brother of Mendoza was helping police in the negotiations, Magtibay said. "We should really resolve this quickly so that it will not have a wider effect," Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said.

© 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

[uncoosesoge]

Plane carrying 8 bodies arrives in HK

(Xinhua)

Updated: 2010-08-25 20:50

HONG KONG - A chartered plane, carrying tourist group members, victims' relatives and the bodies of the eight victims in the hostage crisis in Philippine capital Manila, arrived at the Hong Kong International Airport on Wednesday evening after an around 90-minute flight.

Also on board the chartered flight were 19 family members of the eight dead and those injured tourists. Another eight Hong Kong tourists who were caught in Monday's abduction tragedy also returned on the same flight. The flight took off around 6:19 pm local time from Manila after a brief farewell ceremony.

Chief Secretary for Administration of the Hong Kong government Henry Tang, President of Hong Kong's Legislative Council Jasper Tsang, Governor of the Non-official Members of Hong Kong's Executive Council Leung Chun-ying, and deputy director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong Li Gang stepped onto the plane to receive them home.

The hostage crisis in Manila, involving a 21-member Hong Kong tour group, ended on Monday night with eight hostages killed and several others injured, one of whom in critical condition.

[boffincash]

Police may have shot some Philippines bus hostages

MANILA | Thu Sep 9, 2010 6:23am EDT



Members of inquiry and review committee look inside the bus that was used in the August 23 hostage crisis in which eight Hong Kong tourists were killed, during an inspection at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City, Metro Manila September 8, 2010. From L-R: Herman Basbano, Justice Secretary Leila De Lima and Roan Libarios.

MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines acknowledged for the first time Thursday that some of the hostages killed during a botched bus hijack rescue operation in Manila last month may have been shot by police. Eight Hong Kong tourists died when police commandos stormed the bus and killed the hijacker, a disgruntled former police captain, prompting criticism from China and elsewhere that the Philippine force was ill-equipped to handle hostage situations.

Based on forensic reports, most of the hostages were not shot at close range and dozens of gunshots were fired from outside the bus, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima told reporters Thursday. Police officials had said snipers positioned to target the hostage-taker, who was seeking to be reinstated in the force, were the only ones who fired at the bus. The bus driver had also testified that the hostages were shot at close range.

"From what we see from the results of the bullet trajectory examination, there were certain shots that came from afar, not all came from the snipers because we know where the snipers were," de Lima said. De Lima, who sits on a panel reviewing the hostage rescue operation, said blood would have splattered all over the seats and windows of the bus if the hostages were shot at close range. Dried blood was found only on the seats and floor of the bus.

In a chat with local television anchors aired live on Thursday, President Benigno Aquino said his government had begun efforts to improve police capability to handle similar hostage crises in the future. "Our government is now focused on taking the necessary steps to prevent this tragedy from happening again," Aquino said. "We are also examining our internal processes and crisis management protocols to see how they can be improved."

Aquino came under heavy criticism for his handling of the bus hijacking on August 23, casting doubts on his ability to deliver promises of enforcing the law and improving security.

(Reporting by Manny Mogato; Editing by Rosemarie Francisco and Alex Richardson)