Report: Manila hostage tragedy survivor hit from outside bus

At least one survivor of the Manila hostage crisis on August 23 last year was hit by an object that came from outside of the bus where a dismissed policeman kept them in, a Hong Kong court was told on Tuesday. According to a report of Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), a survivor told a Hong Kong inquest on Tuesday that "after being shot by the gunman, she was again hit in the head by something which came in through a window." The hostage-taker, dismissed Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza shot Yik Siu-ling but an unknown object from outside the bus also hit her head. "Yik Siu-ling told a Hong Kong inquest that she suffered a shattered jaw before being struck a second time by an unknown object from outside the vehicle," the RTHK report said. Mendoza and eight Hong Kong tourists were killed following a botched police rescue attempt in the August 23, 2010 incident. During the inquest, Yik also recounted that another passenger talked to Chinese Embassy representatives by phone. The passenger was told they would be freed at 3:00 p.m. that day, the RTHK report said. Earlier, the Hong Kong court was told that Mendoza initially did not appear to intend to hurt the hostages. However, his mood changed drastically when he saw on a television monitor that the police were arresting his brother. Some witnesses also testified that they had planned to overpower Mendoza, while others said they planned to take away his firearm. Both plans failed. – VVP, GMA News