Hong Kong Eight Chinese tourists were killed Monday after a hostage crisis in the Philippines came to a violent end. The incident is likely to heap pressure on new president Benigno Aquino, who must confront the diplomatic fallout with his giant neighbor while seeking to reassure tourists that his impoverished nation of 92 million is safe to visit.
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Philippine security forces stormed a tourist bus in the capital, Manila, at around 8.30 p.m. local time after an 11-hour standoff with a man armed with a M-16 rifle who had boarded the bus, taking hostage 22 tourists from Hong Kong and three Filipinos.
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The gunman – a police officer protesting his firing in 2008 – became agitated as night fell and specialist SWAT units encircled the bus. He began shooting hostages, and millions of TV viewers worldwide, including many in China and Hong Kong, watched in horror in bars and restaurants as security forces stormed the bus.
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~http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2010/0823/Hong-Kong-issues-black-alert-after-deadly-Manila-hostage-crisis~
~http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9HQH5Q80&show_article=1
