Fiji Rebels Free 18 in Parliament but Seize Resorts

Rebel leaders today released the remaining 18 hostages in a 2-month-old parliamentary hostage crisis, Fijian radio said.

The crisis has spawned increasing unrest, including the seizure of at least four tourist resorts, the military said.

The U.S. government urged all Americans to leave the country.

Coup leader George Speight and deposed Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry hugged before Chaudhry, who was Fiji’s first prime minister of ethnic Indian descent, and other hostages were loaded onto two trucks, according to radio.

The release followed a deal Sunday, when the military agreed to scrap the country’s multiracial constitution and grant Speight and his henchmen amnesty.

The military seized control May 29 after violence and looting in the wake of Speight’s raid on Parliament.

Meanwhile, other rebels in Fiji have seized four tourist resorts in the last two days: Buca Bay, Rukuruku, Laucala Island and Turtle Island, where “The Blue Lagoon” was filmed.

It was unclear if the takeovers were part of Speight’s efforts to pressure Fiji’s tribal chiefs to endorse his proposed Cabinet for an interim government or if his campaign was spiraling out of control.

Laucala Island, formerly owned by late American media magnate Malcolm Forbes, was sold last year by his estate and has been closed for several months. It was unclear how many tourists were at Buca Bay and Rukuruku. Forty tourists at Turtle Island were released hours after that takeover.