A Gunman Opens Fire At A High School In Turkey, Wounding At Least 16 Before Killing Himself

ANKARA, Turkey — A erstwhile student opened occurrence astatine a precocious schoolhouse successful southeastern Turkey connected Tuesday, wounding astatine slightest 16 people, earlier sidesplitting himself, an charismatic said.

The 18-year-old attacker, equipped pinch a shotgun, fired randomly wrong a vocational precocious schoolhouse successful Siverek, Sanliurfa province. He later killed himself pinch nan aforesaid shotgun aft being “cornered by police,” Gov. Hasan Sildak said.

The onslaught near 10 students, 4 teachers, a canteen worker and a constabulary serviceman hurt, Sildak said. While astir of them were being treated successful Siverek, 5 of nan teachers and students were transferred to a infirmary successful nan provincial superior because their conditions were much serious, nan politician said.

The motive for nan onslaught remains unclear. School shootings are uncommon successful Turkey.

The attacker did not person a criminal record, Sildak said. The schoolhouse had been declared safe and nary imperishable constabulary serviceman was assigned to protect it, he added, calling nan shooting an “isolated incident.”

NTV tv and different media reports said nan assailant had threatened an onslaught connected nan schoolhouse connected societal media anterior to nan shooting.

One student told nan state-run Anadolu Agency that he and a friend jumped retired of their schoolroom model to fly nan attacker.

“He abruptly entered nan schoolroom and fired. He fired 4 aliases 5 times. Two group were hit. He past went into nan adjacent classroom,” Anadolu quoted Omer Furkan Sayar arsenic saying. “We first threw ourselves to nan crushed and past 2 of america jumped retired of nan window.”

Sayar continued: “He didn’t opportunity anything, he entered and started to sprout directly.”

Earlier, media reports said each students were evacuated and constabulary typical operations units were deployed aft nan assailant refused to surrender.

“The individual was cornered wrong nan building done constabulary involution and died aft shooting himself,” Sildak told reporters, adding that a “comprehensive” investigation into nan shooting would beryllium carried out.

Video footage showed dozens of students moving retired of nan schoolhouse toward nan gross and onto nan street.

Fraser writes for nan Associated Press.