At least nine people have been killed and 13 others injured after a shooting at a secondary school in southern Turkey, in what authorities describe as the country’s second such incident within 48 hours.
The attack occurred at Ayser Çalık Secondary School in the Onikişubat district of Kahramanmaraş, where a 13-year-old student allegedly opened fire on classmates and staff on Wednesday afternoon. Officials said the victims include eight students and one teacher.
Governor Mükerrem Ünlüer said the suspect arrived on school premises with multiple firearms concealed in a backpack. Witnesses reported that the student began shooting in the school courtyard before entering classrooms and firing indiscriminately.
The attacker, identified by local media as İsa Aras Mersinli, died at the scene. Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death, with early indications suggesting it may have been self-inflicted. The weapons used in the attack are believed to belong to the suspect’s father, a retired police officer, who has been taken into custody for questioning.
The incident comes less than two days after another school shooting in the Siverek district of Şanlıurfa province, where an 18-year-old former student injured 16 people before taking his own life.
Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi described the back-to-back attacks as unprecedented, noting that several of the injured in the Kahramanmaraş incident remain in critical condition.
The twin incidents have triggered nationwide concern over school safety and firearm access. Although Turkey enforces strict gun control laws, the use of a privately owned weapon in the latest attack has raised fresh questions about storage practices in homes.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has pledged a full investigation, warning that any negligence uncovered will be met with strict consequences. Meanwhile, teachers’ unions have called for protests over safety conditions in schools.
Authorities have also imposed temporary restrictions on the broadcast of graphic footage from the scene, while investigations continue. The school has been shut indefinitely as security agencies work to determine the motive behind the attack.