A man armed with a pistol entered Estonia's Defense Ministry and opened fire on Thursday, but police stormed the building and killed him, officials said, according to AP. During the gunfire, many ministry employees escaped by jumping from first-floor windows, but none of them were injured. Defense Minister Mart Laar was not in the building at the time, said ministry spokesman Hannes Kont. Estonian Security Police spokesman Erik Heldna denied earlier reports that the Estonian gunman had tried to take hostages before being shot and killed. The attacker - who was born in 1954 but whose name was being withheld - entered the ministry in downtown Tallinn in mid-afternoon. He threw a smoke bomb, fired several shots and then tried to move past two security guards in the lobby, said Kont. "He was killed in a gunfire exchange that took place between the assailant and police," Heldna told a news conference. No other casualties were reported in the attack, and Heldna dismissed earlier reports that the assailant had attempted to take hostages. He said the gunman had no connection to the Defense Ministry or the Baltic country's military and that his motive was unknown. -- SPA
