PHNOM PENH, June 16 (Xinhuanet) -- Cambodian police on Thursday successfully ended the six-hour long hostage crisis in the northwestern city of Siem Reap.

    Four hostage-takers were arrested, but one Canadian boy were killed.

 

Cambodian soldiers wait in front of the Siem Reap Int'l School. (Reuters)

    Four masked men, believed armed with gun, entered a private-run international school at about 9:30 am on Thursday in Cambodia's northwestern tourist city of Siem Reap and took about 70 students hostage. About 30 students were released later, leaving some 40 still at the hand of hostage-takers.

    "A three-year-old Canadian boy was killed by the hostage-takers, others were free," government spokesman Khieu Kanharith told Xinhua.

    The gunmen killed the boy when government did not meet their demands to offer 30,000 US dollars, weapons and a 12-seater vehicle for making their escape to the Cambodia-Thailand border. "They threatened to kill the children one by one if the demand did not meet," Khieu Kanharith added.

Cambodian authorities sit outside the Siem Reap Int'l School. (Reuters)

    Police then stormed into the school at about 3:00 p.m. Police opened fire at the hostage-takers when they attempted to escape with several children and arrested the four.

    "The hostage incident ended now, but government needs to carry out further investigation on it," said Khieu Kanharith, who is also the minister of information. "It is still not clear about the motivation and the real identity of the hostage-takers though they are all khmer," he added.

Cambodian authorities are seen outside the Siem Reap Int'l School. (Reuters)

    According to an eyewitness, the children are aged between two and six and from some foreign countries and region, including Australia, Japan, Canada and China's Taiwan province. They are the children of expatriate workers living and working in the tourist city of Siem Reap.

    Siem Reap, located more than 300 km northwestern of Phnom Penh, is home of world famous Angkor temples.

    Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Thursday condemned the hostage-taking, calling the government and relative authorities to strengthen the security measures in Siem Reap.

    The hostage-takers were security personnel hired from a security company in Phnom Penh, Hun Sen said. He also said it was not a international terrorism. Enditem

(Xinhua/AFP)