Estranged husband kills family, self in Cyprus

A man in Cyprus shot dead his estranged wife and their nine-year-old daughter before turning the gun on himself following a heated argument during their personal meeting, police said Wednesday.

The man had called his estranged wife to talk and they met in the afternoon in a busy Nicosia suburb of the island country located in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Xinhua reported.

But he suddenly started shooting with an army assault rifle following a heated argument during their meet, police said, adding thereafter he shot himself in the head and died.

The woman, their nine-year-old daughter, and the man were pronounced dead after being rushed to hospital. But their 14-year-old son remains critically injured, doctors said.

Army assault rifles are issued to all Greek Cypriot males after they complete a 24-month service in the small Cypriot National Guard. But they are seldom used in crime of any kind.