Spanish Schoolchildren Released From Hostage Drama

Police tonight captured a man who had taken hostage at knifepoint 25 children and their teacher at his former school near Barcelona. None of the children, aged between 11 and 12, were hurt.

He burst into the Casal de l'Angel school at around 3pm and demanded 1m euros (£638,000) for the release of his hostages, some officials said. Other reports said he wanted $1m.

At around 5pm the hostage-taker released 21 of the 25 captives in two groups, and about 45 minutes later the Spanish government announced he had been detained at the school in Hospitalet de Llobregat, an industrial town just south of Barcelona.

It was not immediately clear if the crisis was resolved by police storming the building or if the man surrendered. Throughout the incident it was believed the assailant was an adult aged around 25, but after the children were released some reports said he was a minor.

Spain's interior minister, Angel Acebes, confirmed the arrest and said the man was a former pupil at the school.

A police chief and the local mayor negotiated with the assailant during the incident, which lasted nearly four hours. During the crisis the building was cordoned off while crowds of worried parents and bystanders waited for news.

After the incident a car left the schoolyard, apparently taking the assailant to a police station. A crowd swarmed around it and many people screamed insults.

Earlier, one unidentified boy who was evacuated from the school described how teachers rushed classes through the cafeteria and out into the playground. "They told us some man had slipped into the school," the boy told Spanish national radio. "I was scared."

A teacher who identified herself only as Nuria said the assailant was admitted to the school after ringing the doorbell as if he was a parent coming to collect his children.