At least 26 killed in Texas church shooting

At least 26 people have been killed and 20 others wounded after a gunman opened fire at a Texas church during Sunday service, BBC News reports.

The attack happened at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, a small town in Wilson County. The victims' ages ranged from five to 72.

The suspected gunman was later found dead in his vehicle some miles away.

Police identified him only as a "young, white male", but US media named him as Devin Patrick Kelley, 26.

Kelley is reported to have been discharged from the US Air Force in 2014 following a court-martial for assaulting his wife and child.

Texas Department of Public Safety regional director Freeman Martin said the attacker, dressed all in black and wearing a bulletproof vest, opened fire with an assault-style rifle outside the church at around 11:30 local time (17:30 GMT) and then moved inside.

As the gunman left the church, a local citizen grabbed his own rifle and began shooting at the suspect, who then dropped his weapon and fled in a vehicle.

The citizen pursued the suspect, who eventually drove off the road and crashed his car at the Guadalupe County line.

Police found the man dead in his car, but it is unclear if he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound or from injuries received when fired on by the local citizen. The car contained several weapons.

Mr Martin added: "We have multiple crime scenes. We have the church, outside the church. We have where the suspect's vehicle was located.

"We have been following up on the suspect and where he's from. We have Texas Rangers at all the hospitals locating those and interviewing those who were injured."

Governor Greg Abbott, confirming the death toll, said it was the worst mass shooting in the history of Texas.

"This will be a long, suffering mourning for those in pain," he said at a news conference on Sunday.