Washington - As many as 10 people, including the alleged gunman, were killed in a shooting spree in the south-eastern United States state of Alabama on Tuesday.
Mayor Wynn Tonmelton of Geneva in southern Alabama, where the gunman was killed, told local media that eight people died on Tuesday afternoon in neighbouring Samson, where the shooting started, and one was killed between Samson and Geneva.
The gunman died in a parking lot in Geneva after a shootout with police. But it was not immediately clear whether he shot himself or was shot by someone else.
The two towns of Geneva and Samson are near the Alabama border with the Florida panhandle.
The shooting began in Samson and included at least one victim at a gas station. At least five other victims were killed in a home in the same town.
After fleeing Samson, the shooter drove to Geneva, where he encountered police. Gunfire was exchanged and a chase then continued to a parking lot where the gunman died.
"Had he not been slowed down, no doubt we would have had more casualties," Mr Tonmelton said, adding that he was shooting anybody he saw.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has sent an agent to assist local police.
Meanwhile, in Berlin a gunman went on rampage at a school near the German city of Stuttgart, killing at least ten people and injuring several, German television reports said.
The killing occurred at 9:30am on Wednesday local time at the Albertville school in Winnenden near Stuttgart. The gunman later fled into the town centre in Winnenden.
The killer was said to be a 17-year-old former student of the school. The school was evacuated immediately after the shooting.
Police have started a mass search for the attacker.
