MOSCOW, October 23 (RIA Novosti) - The police of Ottawa have lifted the downtown safety lockdown, a statement published on the city's police service's website said.
"The safety perimeter in Downtown Ottawa has now been lifted. The ongoing police investigation in the downtown core has determined that there no longer exists a threat to public safety in the area," the statement said.
The statement, however, notes that police operation is still underway on Parliament Hill, thus remaining cordoned off.
On Wednesday morning, a soldier guarding the National War Memorial in Ottawa was shot dead by an unidentified gunman. Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, 32, has been named as a potential suspect in the shooting. Reportedly, he is of Algerian descent and was born in Canada.
The incident comes just two days after a member of the Canadian Armed Forces was killed in a car attack in the city of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu in Quebec.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper addressed the public following the incident saying that Canada lacks immunity from terror attacks. Harper also said that Canada would strengthen its efforts to fight and prevent any such incidents in the future.
