Canadian woman, 7 police officers, 2 civilians killed in Jordan shooting

KARAK, Jordan, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A Canadian female visitor, seven police officers and two civilians were killed Sunday in gun attacks in and near the Jordan city of Karak that targeted tourists and police, officials said.

Gunmen shot at police in three locations: an ancient castle, a house and a police station, a statement by Jordan's Public Security Directorate said. At least 27 others were reported wounded.

The gunmen holed up in the Crusader castle opened fire on Karak police, "wounding several policemen and passersby," the statement added.

Several tourists were taken hostage, according to the BBC. and some were still being held late into the night. The government did not acknowledge there were hostages.

"Police and security forces have surrounded the castle and its vicinity and launched an operation to hunt down the gunmen," the statement said, noting the officers were still engaged with five or six assailants.

A police patrol first received reports of a house fire in Qatraneh in the Al-Karak district, about 25 miles from Karak, the statement said. Two police officers were wounded and the gunmen then fled into the city.

In another attack, fighters fired on a security patrol in Al-Karak but no one was injured, a statement by Jordan's Public Security Directorate said.

No group has admitted carrying out the attacks.

Jordan is a leading member of the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group in neighboring Iraq and Syria.