A hotel worker has reportedly been fatally wounded by a gunman at a hotel in Eilat.

Details of what happened at the Leonardo Club hotel are still emerging. Dana Zinati, a spokeswoman for the city of Eilat, told Israel's Channel 2 that the man is an American Jewish man in his 20s who came to Israel on a programme that brings American Jews to Israel.

The Jerusalem Post reported the American took the gun away from a hotel security guard after a row with a colleague in the hotel kitchen, then opened fire.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told AP that anti-terror units stormed the hotel in an attempt to stop the suspect doing any more damaging. He said that the gunman was killed during a stand-off with police.

Three people have been taken to hospital.

Eilat, at the southernmost tip of Israel, is a popular tourist resort for Israelis and visitors from abroad.