There were two soldiers standing guard at the war memorial in Ottawa, and a gunman shot one of them, a witness told CNN on Wednesday. Peter Henderson, a journalist, said other soldiers doing drills nearby ran to help the fallen soldier. Henderson said he knew the person shot was a soldier because of the ceremonial uniform the soldier was wearing.
There were “several shooting incidents in downtown Ottawa” on Wednesday morning, police said on Twitter. “Incidents occurred at National War Memorial, near the Rideau Centre and Parliament Hill.” All Ottawa police buildings remain on lockdown and are closed to the public, police also said on Twitter.
There were “numerous gunmen” Wednesday morning at the Canada War Memorial shooting, said Marc Soucy of the Ottawa Police Service. Authorities are working to figure out if there were two or three gunmen, he said. Only one person was shot, Soucy said.
https://twitter.com/KyleSeeback/status/524938811349151744
Police now searching all rooms that weren't locked pic.twitter.com/YAVgZFau5Q
— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) October 22, 2014
A body outside ground at library of parliament pic.twitter.com/gtxWamyWmQ
— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) October 22, 2014
[Original story was posted at 4.00pm Nigerian Time]
A soldier was shot Wednesday in the Canadian capital of Ottawa, and a suspected gunman went into Parliament, authorities said. Police rushed some lawmakers to safety.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper was safely escorted from the scene, his spokesman said.
https://twitter.com/J_MacDonald_PC/status/524928223499784192
A member of Parliament, Michelle Rempel, posted a message on Twitter: “Mom I’m okay, I’m hiding.”
Mom im okay Im in hiding
— Michelle Rempel Garner (@MichelleRempel) October 22, 2014
Ottawa police said shots were fired at the national war memorial, across the street from Parliament, just before 10 a.m. ET. Authorities said the soldier was taken to the hospital.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police urged people in downtown Ottawa to stay away from windows and roofs.
On Monday, a man ran down two Canadian soldiers in his car in what authorities called an apparent terrorist attack. One soldier died, and the other was injured. The suspect was shot by police and later died.
The motive for the attack was not clear, but it came days after Canada raised its domestic terrorism threat level. Intelligence officials told NBC News earlier this month that Canadian authorities feared knife and gun attacks, perhaps inspired by ISIS.
Parliament shooting a very active situation still at the moment. They are searching the building, presumably for a suspect or suspects.
— Josh Wingrove (@josh_wingrove) October 22, 2014
