Moscow, 30 June 2023 (dpa/MIA) - A gunman fired several shots at the airport in Chișinău, the capital of Moldova, on Friday killing two people, the Moldovan internet portal agora.md reported, citing authorities.

The gunman was injured and arrested during a police operation. He had allegedly been prevented from entering the country by border guards.

According to unconfirmed media reports, he snatched a pistol from a border guard during the border check and then fired shots.

One border guard and another person were killed, preliminary reports said. According to unconfirmed reports, the man had also taken hostages earlier. The airport building was evacuated and air traffic was delayed.

The alleged perpetrator is a Russian citizen who had landed on a plane from Turkey, local Moldovan media reported.

Moldova, a former Soviet republic, is located between Romania and Ukraine. It is a popular destination for Russians and an important transport hub and transit point. Russians make up an ethnic minority in Moldova.

Hundreds of Russian citizens land there every day. They are usually taken aside at passport control and questioned again separately about the reason for their entry.

The situation in Moldova, which is pushing to join the European Union, is politically tense because of Russian attempts to exert influence there.

In addition, the Moldovan security forces want to prevent Russian fighters from entering there covertly in order to destabilize the situation in the small and completely impoverished country.

For this reason, authorities are particularly scrutinizing Russians. Moscow has also stationed soldiers in the pro-Russian region of Transnistria, which broke away from Moldova.