Graz: A tragic school shooting in the south-eastern city of Graz has left ten people dead, including the suspected gunman, Austrian authorities have confirmed. The incident occurred Tuesday morning at the BORG Dreierschützengasse high school, sending shockwaves across the nation.
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner stated that six women and three men were among the victims, and an additional 12 people sustained injuries, some of them critical. The attacker, identified as a 21-year-old former student of the school who had failed to graduate, reportedly used two legally owned firearms during the rampage.
Officials believe the suspect took his own life in a school restroom following the attack. Law enforcement has yet to disclose how many of the deceased were students, though Graz Mayor Elke Kahr indicated that multiple students and at least one adult were among those killed. She described the incident as a “terrible tragedy.”
Special police units were dispatched to the scene at around 10 a.m. local time after reports of gunfire. The school was quickly evacuated and the surrounding area secured. Authorities have assured the public that there is no ongoing threat.
Emergency personnel and heavily armed police secured the area, and a police helicopter was spotted overhead, as reported by the regional newspaper Kleine Zeitung. Support services were made available for victims’ families and surviving students.
Chancellor Christian Stocker declared three days of national mourning, calling the attack “a dark day in the history of our country.” He described the event as a “national tragedy” that has left the nation in deep sorrow.
European leaders expressed their condolences, with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas writing on X (formerly Twitter) that she was “deeply shocked.” She emphasized the importance of schools being safe spaces for children to learn without fear. EU spokesperson Paula Pinho also extended sympathies, stating that the union stands in mourning alongside Austria.
Graz, Austria’s second-largest city with a population of roughly 300,000, is now grappling with the aftermath of one of the country’s deadliest school shootings in recent memory.
