Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Nov 5: The “hostage crisis” at Germany’s Hamburg airport that forced cancellation of over 100 flights worldwide, ended after over 18 hours on Sunday evening after the 35-year old gunman surrendered and his four-year old daughter rescued unharmed.
The Hamburg police, in its latest update, said the “hostage situation is over and the suspect and his daughter got out of the car. The man was arrested by the emergency services without resistance,” adding that the girl was unharmed.
It all started at around 2 am (IST) on Sunday when a gunman taking his four-year old daughter as hostage rammed his car through the security gates of the Hamburg airport, firing two shots in the air and flinging two burning bottles out of the vehicle and parked the car under a plane brandishing his gun, a police spokesman said.
The police said two individuals were inside the car – A 35-year-old man and a 4-year-old girl and the vehicle was parked under a plane. The cops believe that the hostage situation likely involved a custody battle. Police said the girl’s mother earlier told them the father had been in contact with her.
The wife of the driver had placed an emergency call alerting police to the abduction of her child, the spokesman added. According to a Germany-based news portal, the girl was staying with her mother in Stage. On Saturday, the 35-year-old man from Buxtehude “forcibly snatched” the woman’s daughter.
A Turkish Airlines plane along with aircraft from other airlines under which the car was parked was evacuated. Authorities cleared the terminal buildings. The Hamburg police earlier said a large contingent of emergency services was present at the airport, adding that psychologists as well as officers specialised in negotiations were on site and that they were in contact with the individual in the vehicle.
The airport, which was closed on Saturday night, said 286 flights with around 34,500 passengers had been scheduled on Sunday. There was no immediate announcement on its reopening.
The airport in the northern German city had been closed to passengers and flights cancelled since Saturday night when the man, who was armed, broke through the airport gate with his vehicle and parked it under the plane. A psychologist has been negotiating with the man for 18 hours. Nobody was injured during the standoff since all passengers had evacuated the airport, police said.
The mother of the abducted girl also arrived at the airport on Sunday morning and was getting psychological support. A paediatrician also arrived at the airport to look after the girl once the hostage-taking is over. More than 100 flights were cancelled and several planes were rerouted. Thousands of travellers have been affected by the standoff and hundreds were put up at hotels close by.