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A tragic incident unfolded at a Turkish middle school on Wednesday when a student opened fire in two classrooms, resulting in the deaths of nine individuals and injuries to 13 others, as reported by the interior minister. This marks the country’s second such tragic event in just two days.
The 14-year-old responsible for the shooting was subsequently killed.
According to Kahramanmaras provincial Governor Mukerrem Unluer, the young assailant arrived at the school equipped with firearms that are believed to have belonged to his father, a retired police officer.
In total, he was armed with five guns and seven magazines.
Authorities have yet to determine the motive behind the attack.
It was not clear whether the gunman was killed by police or killed himself.
Six of the 13 people wounded were in serious condition, Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said.
The attack came a day after 16 people, mostly students, were wounded when a former student opened fire at a high school in nearby Sanliurfa province.
The assailant later killed himself.
Until this week, school shootings were rare in Turkey.
State-run broadcaster, TRT, identified the latest shooter as Isa Aras Mersinli and said his father was detained for questioning.
Turkish authorities imposed a ban on the broadcast of “traumatic” images from the shooting, warning media organizations to limit coverage to statements from officials.
Parents rushed to the school in Kahramanmaras’ Onikisubat district after hearing reports of an armed attack, NTV television reported.