Canadian Soldier Killed, Prime Minister Unharmed In Attack On Parliament

Globe and Mail video added at 7:29 p.m. EDT U.S.A.

Current lede in Ottawa Citizen.

A terrorist struck at the heart of the nation Wednesday, gunning down a sentry at the National War Memorial and wreaking havoc on Parliament Hill where the marble and stone halls echoed with gunfire and ran with blood.

The gunman was shot and killed near the Library of Parliament, reportedly by House of Commons Sergeant-at-Arms Kevin Vickers, a former RCMP officer, and the man responsible for security on the Hill.

It appears the gunman walked right past the Centre Block’s Reading Room, where Prime Minister Stephen Harper was meeting with his caucus Wednesday morning.

From the AP, via the Boston Globe:

A gunman with a scarf over his face shot to death a Canadian soldier standing guard at the nation’s war memorial Wednesday, then stormed Parliament in a hail of gunfire before he was killed by the usually ceremonial sergeant-at-arms, authorities and witnesses said.

The attack immediately raised the specter of terrorism, with Canada already on heightened alert because of a deadly hit-and-run earlier in the week against two Canadian soldiers by a man who police say was fired up with radical Muslim fervor.

Journalist: Dozens of shots fired at Canadian Parliament; building on lockdown; 1 injured there. http://t.co/zNhxK6wBoy

— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) October 22, 2014

LATEST: Solider & gunman die after Parliament siege in #Canada, Parliament locked down http://t.co/pUfYZ24ubh pic.twitter.com/UO7OGPGuLs — Herald Sun (@theheraldsun) October 22, 2014