Local police, who responded to a call shortly after 6am, say they were shot in a "domestic incident" at different homes.

Shreveport police spokesperson Chris Bordelon said seven of the eight children who died were related to the gunman. Two women, including the gunman's wife, were also shot and critically wounded.

The gunman, identified as 31-year-old Shamar Elkins, died after a police pursuit that ended with officers firing on him, according to Mr Bordelon.

Mr Bordelon said the crime scene extended across three locations, adding: "This is an extensive scene unlike anything most of us have ever seen."

At a news conference outside a home where one of the shootings occurred, officials requested patience and prayers from the community.

Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said: "I just don't know what to say, my heart is just taken aback... I cannot begin to imagine how such an event could occur."

The city's mayor, Tom Arceneaux, said: "This is a tragic situation - maybe the worst tragic situation we've ever had," adding: "It's a terrible morning."

In a statement, state police said their detectives have been asked to investigate and that no officers were harmed in the shooting of the suspect.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry said in a statement he and his wife were heartbroken.

"We're deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers and first responders working tirelessly on the scene," he added.

A Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said they received a call about the incident shortly after 8pm on Sunday.

"Currently, 42 firefighters from stations in Ballycastle, Ballymoney and Portrush are attending," the spokesperson said.

Local residents have been advised to keep windows and doors closed and to avoid the area.

Sinn Fein councillor Cara McShane said the fire is at the Antrim Arms, a former hotel, which she described as a "cornerstone of heritage in the town".

"I am deeply concerned by the devastating fire at the Antrim Arms in Ballycastle," she said.

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"My immediate thoughts are with local residents and businesses who will be affected by this incident."

Various crews are involved in tackling the blaze, including teams from Northland, Springfield and Kilrea.

The Item Club, which uses Treasury economic modelling to produce its figures, released its latest report against a backdrop of further shifts in global oil costs due to events in the Middle East.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, was 5% up at $95 a barrel in Asian trading as the prospects for further US-Iran peace talks faltered amid a shaky ceasefire that has seen the key Strait of Hormuz shipping route closed again by Tehran.

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At that level, it's down on the highs near $120 seen last month but the longer oil and natural gas fail to flow through the strait, the greater the squeeze on global supplies becomes.

The Item Club said the price spike, which is already being seen widely through fuel prices, is anticipated to spread across supply chains in the months to come and harm spending power widely.

It sees UK economic growth of just 0.7% for this year - half the shaky 1.4% level achieved last year - with the jobs market enduring its "biggest hit" since the COVID pandemic, with the unemployment rate rising to 5.8% by next year from the current level of 5.2%.

But it predicts that the Bank of England will not have to intervene to help control the rising pace of price growth - inflation - despite forecasting a peak of 4% this year. The rate currently stands at 3%.

It adds the Bank rate is already restrictive enough, at its current level of 3.75%, across 2026.

Matt Swannell, chief economic adviser to the Item Club, said: "Spiralling energy costs and disruption to supply chains will push the UK to the brink of a technical recession in the middle of this year.

"Consumers' spending power will be squeezed, while more expensive financing arrangements and a less certain global economic backdrop will pour cold water on companies' investment plans."

Its warnings around the chance of a recession, defined as two successive quarters of negative growth, go further than other downgrades to the UK's fortunes by major international bodies in recent weeks.

Nevertheless, both the OECD and International Monetary Fund said they see the UK economy taking the hardest hit among major industrialised nations, in their respective updates.

The Item Club released its report just days after official data showed a better than expected performance for growth in February.

The Iran war began on 28 February, choking off a fifth of the world's oil and gas supplies in the process.

Experts are widely warning that even if hostilities were to end immediately, the damage caused to energy infrastructure across Gulf states will take years to fully recover to pre-conflict levels of output.

It threatens elevated bills, from fuel to food, for a long time to come.

Metropolitan Police deputy commissioner Matt Jukes said Britain's Jewish community is facing "a concerted campaign" after the latest incidents, including an attempted 'firebomb' attack at a synagogue in northwest London on Saturday night.

He said bins were targeted outside a communal block on the same evening following an attack on a building previously used by a Jewish charity in Hendon, northwest London, on Friday by a man who lit a plastic bag at the entrance before fleeing.

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Met deputy assistant commissioner Vicki Evans said most of the recent incidents have been claimed online by the Ashab al-Yamin group, which has been publicly linked to Iran.

The group have also claimed similar attacks on Jewish communities across Europe in recent months.

Ms Evans said: "I've spoken previously about the Iranian regime's use of criminal proxies, and we're considering whether this tactic is being used here in London - recruiting violence as a service.

"Individuals carrying out these crimes often have no allegiance to the cause and are taking quick cash for their crimes."

"To anyone even considering getting involved - my message to you would be this - the stakes are high - and it is absolutely not worth the risk for a small reward."

She warned anyone caught for their involvement in the crimes will be prosecuted, including for offences under the National Security Act.

Mr Jukes said "thugs for hire who commit criminal acts and intimidation on behalf of others" would face long prison sentences in a press conference outside the Kenton United Synagogue, in Harrow.

Officers on patrols in the wake of the previous incidents spotted damage to a window at around midnight and saw smoke inside a room as well as evidence that a "bottle with some sort of accelerant had been thrown".

The force said the incident is being treated as arson.

The synagogue is close to a school and a children's playground. By Sunday morning, the area was under a large police cordon, with forensics officers, fire investigation dogs and plainclothes officers at the scene.

A Campaign Against Antisemitism spokesperson said: "Last night, another Jewish synagogue in London was firebombed, this time in Kenton. Thankfully, the damage was limited."

A spokesperson for the Community Security Trust (CST) said the attack caused "minor smoke damage to an internal room, but there were no injuries and no significant structural damage".

The UK's Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis has called the attack "cowardly" and said "a sustained campaign of violence and intimidation against the Jewish community of the UK is gathering momentum".

It comes a day after an arson attack on a building that used to house a Jewish charity elsewhere in northwest London, which is also being investigated as an antisemitic hate crime.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the Metropolitan Police have "stepped up resources" in the area.

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"There is no place for antisemitism in our city, and the perpetrators of these despicable attacks will face the full force of the law," he wrote in a post on X. "London will always stand united against those seeking to divide us."

Sir Keir Starmer said he was "appalled by recent attempted antisemitic arson attacks in North London" in a social media post.

"This is abhorrent and it will not be tolerated," the prime minister said. "Attacks on our Jewish community are attacks on Britain."

A building that used to belong to a Jewish charity in Hendon, northwest London, was attacked on Friday by a man who lit a plastic bag at the entrance before fleeing.

While Jewish Futures no longer uses the site, the signage still bears its name.

Police are also treating that attack as an antisemitic hate crime and no arrests have been made.

On Friday, suspicious items - including two jars containing powder - were found near the Israeli embassy in west London.

Police said the embassy was not attacked but officers are still investigating whether the items are connected to a video posted by an Iran-linked Islamist group, which claimed to have targeted the building with drones carrying dangerous substances.

The incidents followed a spate of other attacks in recent weeks. Last month, four ambulances run by a Jewish charity were burned down in Golders Green, north London, leading to four arrests.

Two people were also arrested this week after bottles of petrol were thrown at a synagogue in Finchley, northwest London.

The Metropolitan Police said officers were called to reports that a vehicle had been involved in a collision on Argyll Street, Westminster, at around 4.30am.

A man in his 50s sustained life-changing injuries and was taken to hospital, along with two women in their 30s, one of whom is in a critical condition. The second woman was treated for minor injuries.

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The driver of the car was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder, GBH, dangerous driving and drink driving. She remains in custody.

The incident, which took place in a busy part of central London, is not being treated as terrorism-related.

Detective chief inspector Alison Foxwell called for potential witnesses to come forward.

She said: "As our inquiries continue, our thoughts are with those injured and their loved ones.

"While this incident took place in the early hours of the morning, venues in the area were still open, and we believe a number of people will have seen what happened.

"I would urge anyone who witnessed the collision, or any activity prior to it that they feel may be of relevance, to come forward.

"The information you have - however minor you believe it may be - could be of crucial importance to investigators."