Irish minister held at gunpoint

Mr Roche was among a number of hostages taken by the gang

A government minister in Ireland has been held hostage at gunpoint during an armed robbery, police say.

Minister for European Affairs Dick Roche was among a number of people held at a hotel and golf resort in the eastern town of Bray.

No shots were fired during the incident, and the hostages were later released unharmed.

The three male attackers then escaped with an undisclosed sum of money in a getaway car, police said.

The three attackers, one of them them armed with a sawn-off shotgun, raided the Druids Glen Marriott Hotel, south of Dublin on Monday morning, police said.

"No shots were fired or any persons injured during the course of the incident," they said in a statement.

Several thousand euros were reportedly stolen from the hotel by the attackers.