Malaysian police rescued 30 children and four teachers unharmed on Thursday after firing tear gas into a kindergarten and killing the hammer-wielding man who had apparently taken them hostage, a news report said, according to dpa. Police from the southern state of Johor had been locked in a 7-hour standoff with the suspect before finally storming the two-storey building. The suspect was shot dead in the incident, said police. "Police were acting in the interest of the children. He put up a fight, in the act, he was shot dead," Inspector General of police Ismail Omar was quoted as saying by the Malaysian Insider online news site. The Star newspaper earlier reported that all the hostages, including 30 children and four teachers, had been released unharmed. The suspect was believed to have threatened to kill the hostages unless he was given a gun. Police had cordoned off the area, put two ambulances on standby and told anxious parents and the media to stand back for fear of triggering panic in the suspect.
