(Russian) Ambassador, 7 others taken hostage in Costa Rica

CNN ^ | May 11, 2007 | AP

[RDTF]

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) -- Police say an armed Uzbek man has taken eight hostages, including the ambassador, at the Russian Embassy in Costa Rica.

Security forces quickly surrounded the building in San Jose, the capital, police spokesman Francisco Ruiz said. Authorities were trying to negotiate with the gunman.

Ruiz said the man, between 17 and 20 years old from Uzbekistan, entered the embassy with his mother and took Ambassador Valery Nikolayenko and four other men and three women hostage. Police were considering the mother a hostage.

The Costa Rica TV network, Telenoticias, reported that the man was apparently upset over the embassy's failure to process some undetermined paperwork.

Telenoticias said the man and his family have lived in Costa Rica for about a year.

[California Patriot]

Live by the sword, die by the sword.

[Neophyte]

Some hard facts instead of the random pseudo-racist rants on this thread.

4. The kid surrendered peacefully already.

"The kid" (of 20 years of age? like some marines fighting in Iraq?) had a firearm on him going to an embassy... sorta Kazakh-Armenian gaucho, eh?

Or maybe a highlander of the old times:

Among the percepts that Andrew Jackson's mother taught him were never to sue anybody for slander or for assault and battery: "Always settle them cases yourself.

Thomas Sowell. Conquests and Cultures.

[Neophyte]

Eleni, the guy has Kazakh citizenship, but his name and the name of the “family friend” are Armenian. Armenians are Eastern Orthodox (several centuries before Russians), and sometimes Greeko-Catholics.

[eleni121]

Thanks...I am now aware of the identity of players in this little drama.

[Ronin]

IIRC this was back when hostage taking was the biggest Beirut industry and, not satisfied with the bunch of westerners they had on ice, they decided to grab a number of Russians to add to the mix.

Instead of the usual Western wimp response, the KGB/GRU went out and grabbed a couple of very respected Mullahs and took pics of them hog-tied with sharp knives next to their jewels, which were then delivered back to the mosques.

The Russians were released with apologies, and so were the Mullahs.

Nobody doubted for a moment that the Russians WOULD make good on the threat. Too bad we're just too damn civilized to get away with that kind of response.

[semaj]

Bush’s fault.

[monday]

“Some hard facts instead of the random pseudo-racist rants on this thread.”

I suspected Muslim terrorists too until I heard he had a problem with the Embassy processing his paperwork. Then we find out his name is Roman Bogdanyans. He’s not Muslim. He is ethnic Armenian or Russian and probably Orthodox Christian. I have sympathy for him since I too have been the victim of bureaucratic incompetence and laziness.

[Safetgiver]

So much for buying a place in Costa Rica!....Damn! I have hopes of moving there in three years. Now I got MoeHamHeads probably running the fishing boat I want to take out.

[Lijahsbubbe]

I suspected Muslim terrorists too

And why shouldn't we? I'm not going to apologize to anyone for suspecting a Muslim. Embassy + hostage = Muslim. We had more odds of being right than wrong. :)

[monday]

“I’m not going to apologize to anyone for suspecting a Muslim.”

Thats like saying “I’m not apologizing for being ignorant.” since it said in the original article that his problem with the embassy was their failure to process paperwork instead of being that of a religious nature. I suppose you could be proud of your ignorance, but it seems a strange thing to be proud of.

[Lijahsbubbe]

Thats like saying “I’m not apologizing for being ignorant

No dear, ignorance is trusting CNN.