With at least 100 Germans missing, Schroeder to cut short holiday

BERLIN, Dec 28 (AFP) - Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will cut short his holiday amid reports that at least 100 Germans vacationing in southern Asia are still unaccounted for, Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said Tuesday.
Fischer told reporters after a meeting of the government crisis team that the number of Germans missing was in the "three-figure" range.
He said there were still no reliable casualty figures available since the tidal waves pounded coastal areas throughout southern Asia Sunday.
Tour operator Thomas Cook said earlier Tuesday that about 300 Germans were still missing in the Phuket and Khao Lak areas of western Thailand alone.

12/28/2004 12:41 GMT - AFP