Two individuals lost their lives and at least six others sustained injuries during an incident involving gunfire that occurred on Saturday on the Greek island of Crete.

The event unfolded shortly after 11 am and was triggered by an ongoing familial dispute in the village of Vorizia, situated 32 miles south of the island’s main city, Heraklion.

Confirmed by the police in an official statement, the casualties of the shooting were a 39-year-old man and a 56-year-old woman. Emergency services EKAB reported that six additional individuals were swiftly taken to nearby hospitals with injuries of different levels of severity.

Police mentioned that two injured men are currently hospitalized and being monitored, with their involvement in the armed altercation being investigated.

Following the gunfight, a significant response from security forces and emergency teams was mobilized to the small mountain village, where authorities have initiated a preliminary inquiry.

Local media sources suggest that the incident is the latest development in an acrimonious conflict between two local families, following a detonation at a house under construction the previous night, with no injuries reported in that event.

Reports from Greek public broadcaster ERT indicate that the two families had previously clashed over grazing territories, which had been resolved through private mediation, a customary practice in rural regions of Crete. The dispute reignited last year when a member of one family bought land to construct a house in an area controlled by the other family, local news sources revealed.

Allegedly, the house that was the scene of the explosion on Friday was erected on this disputed piece of land.