[Benjamin]

An eight-year-old girl from London has been shot dead while on holiday in Jamaica.

Imani Green was in her cousin's shop in the rural north coast town of Duncans when a man entered the store on Friday and an argument broke out.

Police said the man then opened fire, shooting at people inside.

Imani, whose family live in Balham, south London, was hit and died later in hospital. Three other people are being treated for their injuries.

The BBC's Nick Davis in Kingston said Imani and her mother and sister had been staying with relatives in Duncans.

They had arrived on the island on 27 December and are thought to have been planning to return to the UK at the end of the month.

At about 20:30 GMT on Friday a man walked into the store which is owned by the girl's cousin and opened fire.
'Reprisal shooting'

Her sister, Jenelle Palmer, said: "I picked her up off the ground and realised she was still breathing.

"I flagged down a car and they drove us to hospital."

Imani is understood to have been hit twice, once in the head, and died later in hospital.

The three others, believed to be two women and a man, are now said to be in a stable condition in hospital.

Speaking on 5 live, Nick Davis said Duncans was seen as a "sleepy town and a backwater".

The shooting had "really come as a shock to that local community, crime is pretty much unheard of", he said.

The area also recorded the second lowest figure for murder in Jamaica last year, he added.

Police said there were a number of lines of inquiry but one theory was that the shooting was in reprisal for an earlier gun attack but no further details of this incident have been revealed.

The Foreign Office has confirmed it has been providing consular assistance and liaising with local authorities since the shooting on 11 January.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-21002359

[Ammi]

..that's very sad..strangely enough, I had a conversation with my son yesterday about safe places to visit and Jamaica come up..we were there quite a few years ago and we saw a guy waving a machete, chasing another guy...he didn't catch him but it was very unnerving..it's not something you see every day....

[InOne]

Originally Posted by Ammi

..that's very sad..strangely enough, I had a conversation with my son yesterday about safe places to visit and Jamaica come up..we were there quite a few years ago and we saw a guy waving a machete, chasing another guy...he didn't catch him but it was very unnerving..it's not something you see every day....

I've heard they have like closed resorts there. Spaces that are dedicated to making it look beautiful but you're enclosed in kind of thing. So tourists never really get to see the 'real' Jamaica because it's just too dangerous

[AnnieK]

Aw what a tragic story.

[SharkAttack]

Fgs, not the kids. Heart just implodes when reading bad news like this.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by SharkAttack

Fgs, not the kids. Heart just implodes when reading bad news like this.

I feel the same, why target a little girl?

[arista]

Gangs
Fully Armed

[bbfan1991]

So heartbreaking. RIP to that poor girl and my thoughts and condolences are with her loved ones.

There is big gang related problems in Jamaica and I remember the Ross Kemp documentary, it was scary!

[GiRTh]

My parents live in Jamaica and they tell me stories about how they dont go out after a certain time at night cuz its too dangerous. Apart from that, lovely place. Paradise.

[Harry!]

Poor Girl Wishes to the family at this difficult time.