Report: Soldier shot at war memorial near Canadian Parliament; UPDATE: the soldier died

Developing...

(Fox News) Gunshots rang out at Canada's Parliament building Wednesday, with one soldier guarding the nearby National War Memorial shot and a gunman on the loose, officials said.

Shots were reported inside the building, in Ottawa, and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was whisked away to a safe location as Royal Canadian Mounted Police converged on the complex in a hunt for the shooter, who was described as having long, black hair and toting a rifle or shotgun. Bernard Trottier, a Toronto-area MP, tweeted that the gunman inside Centre Block "has been shot and killed” but that could not be confirmed.

Harper “is safe and has left Parliament Hill,” Jason MacDonald, his director of communications, said via Twitter.

Witnesses told the Globe and Mail the man appeared at the National War Memorial, fired multiple shots and that a guard went down. The gunman then ran toward Parliament Hill. The building was locked down and police ordered journalists to shelter in the foyer in front of the House of Commons, the paper reported. Members of Parliament also took cover in the building, tweeting from inside the building.

Michelle Rempel, a Conservative MP from Calgary, used Twitter to communicate with the outside world: “Mom im okay Im in hiding,” tweeted Michelle Rempel, a Conservative MP from Calgary.

At the memorial, emergency responders were seen performing CPR on the shooting victim, believed to be one of the soldiers stationed around the clock at the memorial, Canada.com reported.

The drama unfolded just before 10 a.m., two days after two Canadian soldiers were run over -- and one of them killed -- in Quebec by a man with jihadist sympathies. And on Tuesday, Canada had raised its domestic terror level from low to medium due to "an increase in general chatter from radical Islamist organizations like ISIL, Al Qaeda, al-Shabab and others who pose a clear threat to Canadians," said Jean-Christophe de Le Rue, a spokesman for the public safety minister.

Scott Walsh, who was working on Parliament Hill, told CBC that he saw a man running with a double-barreled shotgun, wearing a scarf and blue jeans. Walsh said the man hopped over the fence that surrounded Parliament Hill and forced someone out of their car, then drove to the front doors of the Parliament building and fired at least two shots.

Hélène Laverdière, a Democrat member of parliament, told CBC that she heard to 20 to 30 shots and hit the floor.

The incident comes just two days after two Canadian soldiers were run over -- and one of them killed -- in Quebec by a man with jihadist sympathies.

On Tuesday, Canada had raised its domestic terror level from low to medium due to "an increase in general chatter from radical Islamist organizations like ISIL, Al Qaeda, al-Shabab and others who pose a clear threat to Canadians," said Jean-Christophe de Le Rue, a spokesman for the public safety minister.

Update:

#BREAKING Canada soldier shot near parliament has died, an official says
— Agence France-Presse (@AFP) October 22, 2014