Tag: Hostage

Suspected gunman takes hostages in Japan

SAITAMA, Japan, Oct 31, 2023 (AFP) – Police were surrounding a post office in Japan late Tuesday as a suspected gunman held an unknown number of people hostage, with local media reporting two people injured in a possible shooting at a nearby hospital. It was not immediately clear whether the two incidents were related, but reports said that the suspect in the hospital case had sped away on a motorbike. Images on television showed the […]

Freed Israeli ‘went through hell’ in attack, treated well in Gaza

By Valerie Leroux and Claire Gounon JERUSALEM, Oct 24, 2023 (AFP) – An 85-year-old Israeli freed after more than two weeks of captivity by Hamas militants in war-torn Gaza said on Tuesday “I went through hell” during her abduction. International pressure has built for the release of the more than 200 other Israeli and foreign nationals still trapped inside Gaza amid withering Israeli bombardment sparked by the deadly Hamas attacks of October 7. Israel was […]

Thai death toll in Israel-Gaza conflict hits 24: PM

BANGKOK, Oct 14, 2023 (AFP) – Three more Thai nationals have died in the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas, bringing the death toll to 24, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said Saturday. “I have been informed that there are three more people who died, making it a total of 24,” Srettha told reporters. Two additional Thai nationals have been wounded, the Thai foreign ministry said, bringing the total to 16. About 30,000 Thais […]

Hamas threatens to kill hostages if Israeli airstrikes continue

By Jay Deshmukh with Adel Zaanoun in Gaza City JERUSALEM, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Palestinian militant group Hamas, which dragged off about 150 hostages in its surprise weekend assault on southern Israel, threatened on Monday to kill them if Israeli air strikes continue “targeting” Gaza residents without warning. The threat came after Israel imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip, cutting off the water supply which sparked UN fears of an increasingly dire […]

Freed French journalist returns home to emotional welcome

  by Delphine TOUITOU with Camille LAFFONT in Niamey French journalist Olivier Dubois, 48, made an emotional return home on Tuesday following nearly two years in captivity in the Sahel, greeted by his family and President Emmanuel Macron at an airport near Paris. Dubois and 61-year-old US aid worker Jeffery Woodke, who was seized in southwest Niger in October 2016 — arrived in the Niger capital, Niamey, on Monday after being freed. Dubois stepped off […]

Gunman arrested in Japan after taking doctor hostage, shooting nurse: reports

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A Japanese man has been arrested for the attempted murder of a doctor he took hostage overnight, reports said Friday. The suspect also shot a nurse, who is severely injured, as he confined the doctor, who is feared dead after the attack, according to public broadcaster NHK. NHK said the 44-year-old doctor was in cardiorespiratory arrest — an expression often used in Japan before a death is confirmed — when he […]

Hostages freed in Texas synagogue standoff, suspect dead

by Francois Picard All four people taken hostage in a more than 10-hour standoff at a Texas synagogue have been freed unharmed, police said late Saturday, and their suspected captor is dead. The hostage siege in the small Texas town of Colleyville — in which the suspect was apparently demanding the release of a convicted terrorist — had sparked an outpouring of concern from US Jewish organizations as well as from the Israeli government. Colleyville […]

NCRPO: Man in hostage-taking video was cop pulling out handcuffs to subdue Paray

(Eagle News)–The man who was seen in social media posts trying to pull something out from his pocket as police pinned down hostage-taker Alchie Paray was a policeman trying to pull out handcuffs from his pocket. National Capital Region Police Office chief Debold Sinas made the clarification amid the social media posts of the man in a gray jacket and cap as Paray held a press conference after holding hostage several people in V-Mall in […]

Disgruntled former security guard holding hostage at least 20 persons in Greenhills; 1 reported injured

  (Eagle News) – A former security guard at the V-Mall shopping center in Greenhills, San Juan took some 20 persons hostage inside the shopping center’s second floor on Monday, March 2. The disgruntled guard, , later identified as Archie Paray, was armed with a gun. The hostage situation, which is still ongoing, started at around 11 a.m., according to initial information given by the police. Police said that at least one person has been […]

Police arrest gunman in southern France after hostage drama

by Hugues JEANNEAUD BLAGNAC, France (AFP) — Four women were freed “safe and sound” Tuesday after being held hostage for five hours by an armed teenager at a bar on the outskirts of the southern French city of Toulouse, officials said. The 17-year-old hostage-taker remained holed up alone in the establishment in the northwest Blagnac suburb of the city for a couple of hours afterward before finally being arrested following protracted negotiations, Interior Minister Christophe […]

NPA frees six hostages in Agusan del Sur

(Eagle News) — The New People’s Army has freed six hostages in Agusan del Sur. The six, who were being held captive since December last year, were released in Bayugan City in Agusan del Sur on Thursday, Feb. 14. They have been turned over to the 401st Infantry Brigade in Purok 12-A, Poblacion, Sibagat. President Rodrigo Duterte ended peace talks with the Communist rebels in December last year following what he said were their atrocities that […]

Lorenzana vows no let-up in military ops vs Communist rebels

(Eagle News) — Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Thursday, Dec. 20, vowed to continue military operations against Communist rebels, even as they currently hold hostage 14 people, including two soldiers. “I have read in the newspapers (the rebels) want us to stop operations in their areas. But we will not stop,” Lorenzana said. According to Lorenzana, they were committed to ending the Communist insurgency, which spans over 50 years, during the term of President Rodrigo […]