Eight killed in Austria college taking pictures, inside ministry says

CNN
 — 

A shooter opened hearth at a highschool within the Austrian metropolis of Graz, authorities stated Tuesday, killing eight individuals together with youngsters.

Austria’s inside ministry confirmed the fatalities, telling CNN that the victims included kids between 14 and 18 years outdated. The perpetrator can also be useless and the college has been secured, the ministry and Austrian police stated.

Officers first responded to the experiences of “a number of” suspected gunshots on the Bundesoberstufenrealgymnasium Dreierschützengasse college within the northwest of the town at round 10 a.m. native time (4 a.m. ET).

A number of autos and a police helicopter had been deployed to the location. The varsity was evacuated and the realm was secured, with no additional hazard anticipated, the police stated on social media.

Austria’s Chancellor Christian Stocker expressed horror on the taking pictures, writing on X: “The rampage at a college in Graz is a nationwide tragedy that has deeply shaken our complete nation. This inconceivable act all of a sudden tore younger individuals from the life they nonetheless had forward of them.”

“There aren’t any phrases for the ache and grief,” he added.

Gun violence is uncommon in Austria, together with most central European nations. The nation’s price of firearm homicides was simply 0.1 per 100,000 individuals in 2021, in accordance with the Institute for Well being Metrics and Analysis, in comparison with 4.5 per 100,000 individuals in the USA.

However Austria’s gun possession is increased than most European Union nations; there are 30 civilian firearms owned for each 100 residents, in accordance with the Small Arms Survey, a analysis institute based mostly in Switzerland.

A small variety of high-profile violent incidents have taken place there in recent times. Final October, the mayor of a northern Austrian city was shot dead, together with one other sufferer.

In February, a 23-year-old man stabbed five passersby in southern Austria in what police stated was a random assault.

This can be a growing story and will likely be up to date.