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Hijacker shot in China
A hijacker armed with explosives took a group of Australian tourists and a translator hostage in China on Wednesday before police shot and killed him, an Australian embassy official and Chinese media reported.Ten Australians were taken hostage on a tourist bus in the city of Xian in northwest China but nine were released soon after, Janaline Oh, spokeswoman for the Australian Embassy in Beijing, told reporters. Nine Australian passengers were released and transported to safety and a 48-year-old woman from New South Wales was not released with the rest of the group, she said. Chinese police agreed to let the hijacker, Xia Tao, change buses and head to the airport before shooting him as he approached the toll station. Chinese security authorities intervened and secured the release of the woman and the Australian government is pleased the hostages are now safe, said Oh. Oh said she did not believe the hostages had suffered any injuries. Xinhua said the woman and translator were unharmed. Xia took the passengers hostage just before 10:00 am (0200 GMT) and was shot dead at 12:36 pm after negotiations failed, the report said, citing the local public security bureau. It was not clear why he took them hostage. Posted by: Fred 2008-03-06 |
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