New Battles Erupt in Trinidad

Government troops today attacked the state television station while the leader of a Muslim coup attempt was believed inside, and the building was left in flames, residents said.

Heavy gunfire also erupted near the Parliament building, where the rebels were holding Prime Minister Arthur Robinson and other officials hostage.

An Anglican minister negotiating between the government and the rebels said a settlement was likely.

The Rev. Knolly Clarke, asked by reporters if a peaceful solution was possible, said, “Yes, today. The end is in sight.”

Information about the fighting was sketchy, and there was no word about the outcome of either incident.

The government imposed a 24-hour curfew on parts of the capital as negotiations to free Robinson and at least 19 Cabinet officials and legislators appeared to break off.

“Please, please be careful. Do not venture outside,” said a state radio broadcast reminding residents that a state of emergency was in effect. “We cannot dramatize enough the situation.”

Residents said loyal troops attacked the state-run television station held by black Muslim rebels. The station was ablaze and thick gray smoke was rising from the building, they said.

Yasin Abu Bakr, the leader of the 300-strong, Libyan-backed Jamat al Muslimeen group that staged the coup attempt Friday evening, was believed to be inside the building at the time of the attack.

At the Parliament building, where Robinson was being held, gunfire was heard and some reports said troops surrounding the building were shooting at rebels inside. One report said unspecified “foreign troops” were involved in the attack, but the report could not immediately be verified.

Government troops patrolled city streets and residents reported seeing bodies in the eastern section of the capital after widespread rioting and looting Sunday.

A local radio broadcast quoted hospital reports as saying 300 people were killed or injured in the coup attempt or in widespread looting and rioting that wracked the capital of the two-island Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago over the weekend.

In a radio broadcast, Industry Minister Dr. Bhoe Tewarie appealed for cooperation from citizens to restore calm. He made the statement in the neighboring island of Barbados, where he said he has been trying to help restore stability through contacts with the armed forces in Port of Spain.

The rebels holding Robinson have insisted that an agreement calling for Robinson to resign and be replaced by a transition government was being worked out, but there was no government confirmation.

In Washington, White House Deputy Press Secretary Steven Hart said about 6,000 Americans, mostly tourists, are in Port of Spain.