TEMPO.CO, Ottawa - The Canadian Parliament building was fired upon on Wednesday, October 22, 2014, at around 10:00 am local time. The gunman was dressed in all-black attire while his face was half-covered with a scarf. He shot two soldiers in the National War Memorial before shooting at the parliament building.
"I looked out the window and saw a shooter, a man dressed in black with a handkerchief over his nose and mouth and something over his head as well, holding a rifle and shooting an honor guard in front of the cenotaph point-blank, twice," Tony Zobl, an eye-witness, told the Canadian Press news agency.
After shooting the soldiers, the gunman entered the parliament building and fired dozens of shots repeatedly. The two soldiers were reportedly killed while receiving treatment for their wounds.
At the time, a parliament member meeting was being held. Prime Minister Stephen Harper was also present in the building. Luckily, none of the parliament members were injured. Harper was immediately secured.
The gunman, identified as Michael Zehab-Bibeau, was described as an "ISIL-inspired terrorist." He kind of raised his arms in triumph holding the rifle after shooting down the soldiers.
Canada had raised alert against terrorist threats. On Monday, October 20, 2014, a man who had just converted to Islam was shot dead by a Quebec police after a hit-and-run on two soldiers, which killed one of the victims.
ANINGTIAS JATMIKA | AP