Men w/ guns, grenades seize bus w/ 32 children, 2 teachers

(Update)Two men said to be armed with guns and grenades took over a passenger bus near Manila's city hall Wednesday morning, and held hostage 32 school children and two teachers. The police said the hostage-takers were demanding free education for 145 students at the Musmos Daycare Center. According to a report by radio dzBB, the airconditioned bus has been surrounded by members of the Philippine National Police's Special Weapons and Tactics team at the Bonifacio shrine near the Manila City Hall compound. The tourist bus, the same report said, bore plate number WYX-271 and had about 32 students and two teachers on board. Initial reports gathered by police said that the group of schoolchildren were part of a two-bus group out for an excursion. Police said that they were tipped off that an ongoing robbery was taking place around 9:30 a.m. by men armed with an UZI, a .45-caliber pistol and grenade. An alert was then issued to their mobile units. The bus, which had a note tacked on it saying that they were armed with grenades and two .45-caliber pistols and that they were demanding free education for 145 students at the Musmos Daycare Center, was spotted at the Bonifacio shrine and surrounded by police units. One of the hostage-takers has been identified as Jun Ducat, whom relatives of some of the schoolchildren said invited the kids to a "field trip." The kids were suppose to be taken to Tagaytay. - GMANews.TV