Luxury Swiss hotel stormed by pro-Chechen gunmen
A luxury Swiss hotel has been stormed by pro-Chechen gunmen in the Turkish city of Istanbul. Up to 70 people, including a Swissair flight crew, are being held hostage inside the hotel, according to Turkish news agency reports.
The gunmen, armed with automatic rifles and shotguns, stormed the Swissôtel shortly before midnight on Sunday, firing shots.
They ordered all the people in the lobby to lie down. A nine-member Swissair crew, made up of two pilots, six cabin personnel and a security official, are among those being held.
Reports say the gunmen, believed to number around 20, have taken their hostages to the fifth floor of the hotel.
One of the gunmen told the semi-official Anatolia news agency: “We want to make a press statement and then end this action.”
SAirGroup, which owns the Swissotel “Bosphorous” said first indications were that all staff and guests at the hotel were unharmed. In a statement, SAirGroup said about 600 people were registered in the hotel at the time of the attack. Many are reported to have fled when the attack occurred.
The gunmen, protesting at Russian military activities in Chechnya, are reported to have demanded to speak to the interior minister, Sadettin Tantan.
Negotiations to end the stand-off are underway. “I have spoken to them. They have political demands. We are trying to resolve things,” Istanbul governor, Erol Cakir, told reporters after spending a short time in the hotel.
Armed police have surrounded the hotel. The area around the hotel has been sealed off.
The Anatolia news agency said that among the attackers was a Turkish gunman and former prisoner, Muhammed Tokcan, who led a group of pro-Chechen hijackers who seized control of a Russian ferry in the Black Sea in 1996. He was recently freed from prison under an amnesty.
Chechen hijackers seized control of a Russian airliner last month shortly after it left Istanbul, forcing it to fly to Saudi Arabia. Three people died when the plane was stormed.
swissinfo with agencies
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