Philippines: Man on gun charge kills two in court

A Canadian man facing charges of illegal possession of firearms opened fire in a courtroom in the Philippines today, killing two people and wounding a prosecutor before police shot him dead.

The suspect, John Pope, was appearing in court in Cebu city when he pulled out a gun and shot a lawyer and a physician who filed a case against him. He then fired at a prosecutor in the hallway of the building. The regional police director Marcelo Garbo said Mr Pope ignored orders to surrender and tried to fire at police.

The shooting came after recent killings in the country prompted calls for tighter gun laws.