Texas church shooting kills two people

At least two people were killed and one person was critically wounded in the US state of Texas on Sunday after a gunman opened fire inside a church near the city of Fort Worth.

The shooting broke out at the West Freeway Church of Christ, located in the town of White Settlement around 8 miles (12 kilometers) outside Forth Worth.

One person was taken to the hospital and is in critical condition, while two other people were treated for minor injuries at the scene, local media reported.

Authorities have not yet released information on what led to the shooting.

Congregants fired back

White Settlement police chief J.P. Bevering said that the suspected gunman died after being shot by parishioners who fired back in response.

A witness at the church told the New York Times that one of the people killed was a security guard who engaged the shooter.

"He was trying to do what he needed to do to protect the rest of us,'' Mike Tinius told the paper. "It's extremely upsetting to see anyone committing violence."

Texas Governor Greg Abbott condemned the shooting as an "evil act of violence."

"Places of worship are meant to be sacred, and I am grateful for the church members who acted quickly to take down the shooter and help prevent further loss of life," he said in a statement.

The incident on Sunday was not the first deadly shooting to take place in a church in Texas. In November 2017, 26 people were killed when a gunman opened fire on a church congregation in Sutherland Springs, before taking his life.

rs/se (AP, Reuters, dpa)

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