A gunman shot a doctor at a veterans' hospital in the US city of El Paso today and then turned his gun on himself, authorities said.
Both the victim and the shooter in the incident at the El Paso VA Health Care System have died, Major General Stephen M. Twitty told reporters.
"All other VA patients and staff are safe. This is an active crime scene, and the shooting incident is under investigation," he said.
Authorities did not provide any details on the victim and the gunman. The motive for the shooting was not immediately clear.
The FBI is taking the lead in probing the incident.
VA acting Director Pete Dancy said he expects details of the incident will be out soon.
"We have hundreds of potential witnesses and we are processing those right now," he said. "Those people were here seeking medical assistance, so we understand the difficulties that this situation presents to them."
The Department of Veterans Affairs released a statement saying it was saddened by what happened.
"We will continue to cooperate fully with military and civilian authorities at Beaumont Army Medical Center. The safety and continued care of our Veterans and the staff will be our focus throughout this situation," the statement said.
A Pentagon official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that a doctor was shot by a gunman, who later died from a self-inflicted wound.
