Troops storm Manila siege hotel
Police in the Philippines storm a luxury hotel in Manila, after it is taken over by armed renegade soldiers.
A coup bid by renegade Philippine soldiers has ended after hundreds of government troops stormed a luxury hotel in Manila.
The renegades were arrested by police and led, handcuffed, out of the Peninsula Hotel.
They had barricaded themselves in the building after breaking out of court where they were standing trial over a failed 2003 mutiny.
They were calling for the overthrow of President Gloria Arroyo.
In a website statement, the organisers of the botched coup attempt said the country was facing "a crisis of extreme proportions" and that Mrs Arroyo was a "bogus president".
"We have today withdrawn our support from Mrs Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, in order to end her unconstitutional and illegal occupation of the presidency," one of the leaders, Brig Gen Danilo Lim, wrote.
'Chaos and panic'
A five-hour overnight curfew has been imposed in Manila, starting at 2400 (1600GMT).
Interior minister Ronaldo Puno said it would allow the authorities to conduct "follow-up" security operations.
During the hotel assault, about 1,500 government troops had surrounded the building before an armoured personnel carrier smashed through the main entrance.
Tear gas and shots were fired, but there are no reports of casualties.
The BBC's Michael Barker at the scene said the lobby was covered with shattered glass and there were Christmas decorations on the floor.
A leader of the rebels, Sen Antonio Trillanes, said they were ending their action to save the lives of civilians and journalists inside the hotel.
He was arrested along with about two dozen soldiers.
Leonie Anning, a British tourist in Manila, told the BBC News website that she was in a nearby shop when she was evacuated and rushed onto the street.
"There was big chaos and panic," she said.
"There were many armed soldiers... and not knowing what's going on, it was pretty scary," she said.
However, Michael Whiting, the vice-chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce in Manila, told the BBC News website that his Filipino colleagues seemed "pretty apathetic".
"Most people have grown weary of attempts to overthrow the government," he said.
'World watching'
Robert Reyes, a priest who supported the rebels, said the violence was unnecessary.
"We did not really intend any violence - the violence came from the military," he said from the lobby before the rebels surrendered.
"You saw what happened - they had to ram a tank into the lobby of the hotel where there was not a single gunshot was fired. The whole world was watching - may the world have mercy on this government."
The Philippines has a history of insurrection and popular revolt.
Mrs Arroyo, whose popularity has been dented by long-standing corruption allegations, has already survived at least two coup plots and three attempts to impeach her during her time in office.
Sen Trillanes, a navy lieutenant, was elected in May but has remained in military detention while on trial over a 2003 mutiny.
Then renegade troops took over a shopping centre for a day, until they were overpowered by security forces.
MANILA, Philippines (CNN) -- Dramatically played out on live television, an opposition politician and rebel military officers surrendered to government forces after taking over a luxury hotel in Manila.
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/philippines.hotel/index.html
"We're going out for the sake of the safety of everybody," Philippines Sen. Antonio Trillanes said.
The senator made the decision to give up after the military peppered the inside of the hotel with tear gas. Live pictures from inside the hotel showed reporters and rebel soldiers covering their faces.
An armoured personnel vehicle was also seen firing into the lobby of Manila's Peninsula hotel and later rammed through the front entrance of the building.
"The situation is contained within the Peninsula hotel, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told CNN.
"The perpetrators are in the process of being arrested." Those who held the hotel were shown being loaded into a Philippine National Police bus.
Teodoro said no one was injured, but Associated Press reported that at least two people were injured.
The standoff began hours earlier when a group led by Trillanes and Army Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim bolted from a court hearing on charges linked to a failed 2003 coup attempt.
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/philippines.hotel/index.html#cnnSTCVideo
"What happened, to me, was clearly either an attempted rebellion or an attempted coup d'etat," Teodoro said.
Philippines military and police personnel had been surrounding the hotel, where the group was asking for President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to step down. After Trillanes' announcement, soldiers milled around the outside of the hotel, but the scene had calmed noticeably.
Arroyo had issued orders to the military and police in response to the seizure of the hotel, located in Manila's Makati financial district, journalist Adrian Addison told CNN. Few supporters of the rebels were visible around the Peninsula hotel, Addison said.
Philippine authorities gave the rebel group until 2:30 p.m. (0630 GMT) to allow guests to leave the hotel, and until 3:00 p.m. (0700 GMT) to surrender, the ABS-CBN news service reported.
Businessman Peter Parcel was caught in the middle of the hotel's takeover and subsequent tear-gassing. Listen to the eyewitness in the hotel describe what happened
"I couldn't see and couldn't breathe," he said, noting he faced "at least 100 guns" as he exited the hotel.
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