Student kills nine in Turkey’s second school shooting in two days

Updated 15 Apr, 2026 10:41pm 2 min read
An ambulance leaves the scene following a deadly school shooting in the southeastern province of Kahramanmaras, Turkiye. – Reuters
An ambulance leaves the scene following a deadly school shooting in the southeastern province of Kahramanmaras, Turkiye. – Reuters

A 14-year-old student shot at least nine people dead ‌, including eight of his fellow pupils and wounded 13 others at a middle school in southeastern Turkey on Wednesday, officials said, in the country’s second school shooting in two days.

Eight students and one ​teacher died in the attack in the province of Kahramanmaras, Turkey’s Interior Minister ​, Mustafa Ciftci, told reporters, adding that six of the wounded were ⁠in critical condition.

“This was solely a personal attack carried out by one of our ​students; it is not a terror incident,” Ciftci said.

Earlier, Kahramanmaras Governor Mukerrem Unluer had said ​the shooter had shot and killed himself in the commotion.

“An eighth-grade student came with 5 weapons and 7 magazines — which we believe belong to his former police officer father — in his bag, entered ​two classrooms with fifth-grade students, causing deaths and injuries indiscriminately,” Unluer said.

Fifth-grade students ​are usually aged 10 to 11 in Turkey.

School shootings are very rare in Turkey. Asked by reporters ‌if ⁠authorities would take any measures after the shootings this week, Ciftci said: “We will take necessary precautions”, without elaborating.

Broadcaster NTV said the shooter’s father had been detained.

Gun laws are generally strict in Turkey, with only individuals aged over 21 and in possession of a license ​allowed to own weapons. ​However, guns are ⁠widespread in Turkey, with many security officers allowed to carry and own arms.

Unverified footage showed several students jumping from a second-storey window ​at the school as gunshots echoed around the grounds. Unverified ​CCTV footage ⁠from the school showed the attacker shooting two students walking down a hallway.

Turkish media footage from the school grounds on Wednesday showed ambulances arriving at the school where police and crowds ⁠had ​gathered by the gate.

On Tuesday, a former student opened fire ​at a school in the southeastern province of Sanliurfa, wounding at least 16 people, including students and teachers, ​before killing himself.

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