A gunman is dead after injuring several people in a lecture hall at Heidelberg University in western Germany.
Mannheim Police -- who sent in what they described as "strong forces" -- said in a brief statement that the perpetrator was dead, but did not give details of how that happened.
They had earlier asked people on Twitter to avoid the Neuenheimer Feld area of Heidelberg, where the city’s university campus is located.
Police, who said that a large-scale operation was underway, issued an update claiming that four people were wounded, "some seriously", but that there was no present danger at the site.
"It is assumed the perpetrator was a lone wolf," the authorities stated on Twitter.
There was no information on the identities of those injured or that of the suspected shooter.
The university’s press office declined to give any details on the shooting and referred all inquiries to police.
German news agency DPA cited unidentified security sources as saying that the gunman killed himself.
It also reported -- without citing sources -- that the gunman is believed to have been a student himself, and that security officials say initial indications are that the attack was not politically or religiously motivated.
Police said the weapon used in the shooting was a long-barrelled firearm.
Heidelberg, situated south of Frankfurt, has about 160,000 inhabitants. Its university is one of Germany's best-known.
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