Police detain attacker after hostages taken at Madrid bank

MADRID - Spanish National Police confirmed they have arrested the man who held several people hostage at a bank in the Usera district in the south of Madrid on Thursday.

The standoff began at around 9:50 am local time and lasted for around an hour when a man, described as "armed" and "acting alone" in the Spanish press, entered a branch of Bankia in Dolores Barranco street in the Usera area.

Witnesses told the press that it was "a man in his 60's" and he "threatened the branch manager."

A police unit specialized in hostage situations was rapidly dispatched to the scene and following brief negotiations, the attacker surrendered. The police confirmed that nobody had been injured.

The street was re-opened for traffic at around 11:00 am.