Hostage crisis deepens in Hamburg as German special forces on standby

German police advised travellers on Sunday not to use Hamburg airport due to a developing hostage situation. The airport, in the northern part of the city, has been closed to passengers and flights since Saturday night when an armed man broke through a gate with his vehicle and fired a weapon twice into the air, according to German news agency dpa. Authorities also said the man’s wife had previously contacted them about a child abduction. Police said the 35-year-old man had his four-year-old daughter inside the car after reportedly taking her from her mother by force in a possible custody battle. A psychologist has been negotiating with the man for hours and there is no indication that other people could be harmed because the airport has been evacuated of all passengers, police said. Read the best of our journalism: Subscribe to The Times and The Sunday Times YouTube channel: Find us on Facebook: Find us on Twitter: Find us on Instagram: #hamburg #hostage #germany #police