Armed man takes hostage in Estonian defence ministry

An armed man has taken a hostage and fired shots in Estonia's Defence Ministry, according to the Interfax news agency Thursday. There were also reports of an explosion, DPA reported.

Security forces had surrounded the building and the ministry had been evacuated. Emergency services reported that bomb crews with a robot had been dispatched to the scene, according to the Baltic News Agency BNS.

According to reports, the man spoke in Russian. Ministry employees would make no further comments.

A police spokesman had told BNS that there was no information about potential victims and refused to confirm reports about a possible hostage drama.