In pictures: Manila hotel stormed

Philippine troops have stormed a luxury hotel in Manila which had been occupied by a group of dissident soldiers.

An armoured personnel carrier repeatedly rammed the main door of the five-star Peninsula Hotel, before ploughing into the foyer as tear gas was fired.

The rebel troops announced their surrender on live television, saying they did not want civilians in the hotel to be injured or killed.

The renegades, suffering from the effects of the tear gas, were arrested by police and led from the building.

The hotel lobby floor was left covered in shattered glass and strewn with Christmas decorations.

The rebel soldiers, who were calling for the overthrow of President Gloria Arroyo, had occupied the hotel after breaking out of a court where they were on trial for a 2003 mutiny.

Some 1,500 troops were involved in the assault, which was launched after an 0700GMT deadline for the dissident soldiers to leave the building expired.

Most of the guests staying at the hotel in the financial district of the Philippines capital left the building before the assault.

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