A U.S. soldier allegedly shot dead one of his colleagues during a safety briefing at a major military base in North Carolina on Thursday.
During a safety briefing at the 525th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade unit in Fort Bragg, a soldier shot another member of the unit and then turned the weapon on himself. The shooter was injured and is in custody. A third soldier who was in the area was also slightly wounded in the shooting, American Forces Press Service said.
It did not identify any of those involved in the shooting incident that occurred at 3:30 p.m., but NBC News, quoting a "senior U.S. defense official," said that the dead soldier was a battalion commander.
Col. Kevin Arata, 18th Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg Public Affairs Officer, said the reason for the shooting was not yet known.
Fort Bragg law enforcement and emergency responders secured the scene within minutes. Special agents from the Army Criminal Investigation Command are conducting an investigation.
Fort Bragg is known as the home of the U.S. Army airborne forces and Special Forces, as well as U.S. Army Forces Command and U.S. Army Reserve Command.
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