Cathedral shooting kills two and injures six in the Russian Far East

The gunman, a security guard, was detained by police at the scene on the island of Sakhalin. The motive for the shooting is unclear. He broke into the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Resurrection in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and opened fire.

The lives of the six injured - mostly shot in the leg - are not in danger, it is understood. 

'A parishioner, who is currently being identified, and nun Lyudmila Pryashnikova who worked at the cathedral succumbed to their injuries at the scene', a source told Interfax. A local investigator said: 'The shooter was detained at the scene'. 

'The man, identified as Stepan Komarov was born in 1989 and has been working for a local private security firm. A criminal case has been launched against him under Article 105 Part 2 (murder of two and more people) of the Russian Criminal Code'. 

The wounded were taken to hospital. The Investigative Committee - Russia's main federal investigating authority - said psychiatrists would try to determine the suspect's mental condition.

The regional leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Tikhon, said a prayer service would be held at the cathedral later on Sunday.

The shooting comes days after a teenager killed a teacher and a policeman in his school in Moscow.