A gunman who seized a bus full of children in the Philippine capital Manila agreed to surrender at midday Irish time after reaching a deal, a police spokesman said.
The man believed to be armed with grenades, an Uzi submachine gun and a revolver, has been holding 31 children and at least two teachers hostage for over eight hours. He freed one child who was running a fever.
The bus was parked outside Manila City Hall from 9:30 a.m. and surrounded by elite police teams and thousands of onlookers.
There were no other details immediately available on what deal was reached. But the man said he would surrender if he was promised that 145 children at the day care centre in the capital's poor suburb of Tondo were provided with education, television reports said.
He had started the day care centre three years ago.
He also demanded to be allowed to speak on television and he was handed a mobile telephone patched on to local networks.
"I am so sorry I took these children in a violent action to call the attention of the Filipino people to open their minds to the political reality," he said.
"There's so much corruption in the country. We're number one in Asia in corruption," he said in a speech which lasted for at least 15 minutes.
"I am calling on the Filipino people to stop the rotten political system. Don't rely on the politicians for your future. No one can help you but yourselves."
He was later allowed to speak again through a wireless amplifier, and his statement was carried live by radio stations and television networks.