Five people were shot dead after a gunman facing eviction seized hostages in an apartment in the German city of Karlsruhe.
Local police said the gunman, who possessed several hunting rifles, was thought to be among the dead.
Special forces broke into the apartment after smelling smoke and found five bodies.
Police declined to comment on German media reports that the hostages included a bailiff and two other people who had accompanied him to the building.
After shots were heard, officers from the police special response unit, some dressed in protective green suits and helmets, sealed off the area around the building in the north part of the city.
Karlsruhe, with nearly 300,000 inhabitants, is located near the French border and is home to Germany's Constitutional Court.
