Five officers were shot dead in the US city of Dallas during a rally late Thursday over the recent shootings of black men by police.
Six others were wounded in the deadliest attack on US law enforcement since the 9/11 terror attacks of 2001.
"It appears that two snipers shot 10 police officers from elevated positions during the protest rally," Dallas Police Chief David Brown said in a statement quoted by NBC 5.
Four of the fatalities were members of Dallas police, while the fifth was a security official with the local DART transport authorities, the report said.
Three suspects are in custody and a fourth reportedly took his own life after a standoff with police.
The rally was to protest two killings of black men at the hands of police officers this week.
Philando Castile, 32, was shot late Wednesday near Minneapolis, Minnesota, as he tried to get out his wallet after being pulled over for a broken tail light, police said.
Alton Sterling, 37, was shot Tuesday by police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, after officers responded to a complaint about a black male selling CDs and threatening the caller with a gun.
The US Justice Department said it was monitoring the state investigation into Castile’s killing, and would hold its own into Sterling’s death. (DPA/ANA)
