For more headlines like this, please subscribe to Afrihkanews.com
At least 14 people were killed and dozens wounded by a 24-year-old gunman at Prague University on Thursday in the Czech Republic's worst shooting in decades, before authorities said the attacker was "eliminated." the report said.
The deadly violence in the city's historic centre sparked evacuations, a massive response by heavily armed police and warnings for people to stay indoors.
The shooting erupted at the Charles University's Faculty of Arts, which sits near major tourist sites like the 14th-century Charles Bridge.
"More than 14 people have lost their lives and at least 25 have been wounded," police chief Martin Vondrasek told reporters following the shooting.
Emergency services preliminarily reported nine serious injuries, at least five mid-serious and up to 10 light injuries.
Vondrasek said police started a search for the man before the actual shooting as his father had been found dead in the village of Hostoun west of Prague.
The gunman "left for Prague saying he wanted to kill himself," Vondrasek said. Police suggested earlier the gunman had killed his father.
Police searched the main Faculty of Arts building where the gunman was expected to show up for a lecture, but he went to the faculty's other building nearby and they did not find him.
"At 1359 GMT, we received the first information about the shooting," Vondrasek told reporters, adding the rapid response unit was on the scene within 12 minutes.
"At 1420 GMT, the officers in action told us about the gunman's motionless body," Vondrasek said, adding unconfirmed information showed he had killed himself.
Citing a probe into social media, Vondrasek said the gunman was inspired by a "similar case that happened in Russia this autumn," without going into details.
"At the moment, there is nothing to suggest any further imminent danger," he added.
Vondrasek said no police officer was wounded in Thursday's action and that police had not yet started to identify the dead by 1700 GMT as pyrotechnicians were at work in the building.
Police evacuated the building, using a concert hall across the street as a temporary refuge for the evacuees.
The worst shooting since the Czech Republic emerged as an independent state in 1993 prompted support from across the world.
Czech President Petr Pavel said he was "shocked" by the violence and expressed "deep regret and sincere condolences to the families and relatives of the victims."
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen denounced "the senseless violence of the shooting that claimed several lives today."
French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his "solidarity" with the Czech people, just like many other European leaders including Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan said that there was no link between the shooting and "international terrorism."
He added that "no other gunman has been confirmed" and called on people to follow police instructions.
Police cordoned off the area and asked people living nearby to stay at home.
Prague's emergency service said on X that "a large number of ambulance units" were deployed at the faculty.
Source: AFP
布拉格大學槍手造成至少14人死亡
週四，布拉格大學一名 24 歲槍手造成至少 14 人死亡、數十人受傷，這是捷克共和國數十年來最嚴重的槍擊事件，隨後當局表示襲擊者已被「消滅」。 報告稱。
該市歷史中心發生的致命暴力事件引發了疏散，全副武裝的警察做出了大規模反應，並警告人們留在室內。
槍擊事件發生在查爾斯大學藝術學院，該學院靠近 14 世紀的查理大橋等主要旅遊景點。
槍擊事件發生後，警察局長馬丁馮德拉塞克 (Martin Vondrasek) 對記者表示： “超過 14 人喪生，至少 25 人受傷。”
緊急服務部門初步報告 9 人重傷，至少 5 人中度重傷，最多 10 人輕傷。
馮德拉塞克說，警方在槍擊事件發生前就開始搜尋這名男子，因為他的父親被發現死在布拉格西部的霍斯頓村。
馮德拉塞克說，槍手「前往布拉格，說他想自殺」。 警方早些時候暗示槍手殺死了他的父親。
警方搜查了文學院主樓，預計槍手將在那裡參加講座，但他去了附近學院的另一棟大樓，但沒有找到他。
馮德拉塞克告訴記者：「格林威治標準時間 1359 點，我們收到了有關槍擊事件的第一條訊息。」他補充說，快速反應小組在 12 分鐘內就趕到了現場。
馮德拉塞克說：「格林威治標準時間 1420 點，正在行動的警察告訴我們槍手的屍體一動也不動。」他補充說，未經證實的資訊顯示他已經自殺。
馮德拉塞克引述對社群媒體的調查稱，槍手受到「今年秋天俄羅斯發生的類似案件」的啟發，但沒有透露細節。
「目前，沒有任何跡象表明存在任何進一步迫在眉睫的危險，」他補充道。
馮德拉塞克表示，沒有警察在周四的行動中受傷，截至格林威治標準時間 1700 點，警方尚未開始確認死者身份，因為煙火人員正在大樓內工作。
警方疏散了大樓，並利用街對面的音樂廳作為疏散人員的臨時避難所。
這是自 1993 年捷克共和國獨立以來最嚴重的槍擊事件，引發了世界各地的支持。
捷克總統帕維爾表示，他對暴力事件感到“震驚”，並向遇難者家屬表示深切遺憾和誠摯慰問。
歐盟委員會主席烏蘇拉·馮德萊恩譴責「今天奪走多人生命的槍擊事件是毫無意義的暴力行為」。
法國總統馬克宏也表達了對捷克人民的“聲援”，就像包括烏克蘭總統澤倫斯基在內的許多其他歐洲領導人一樣。
捷克內政部長維特拉庫桑表示，槍擊事件與「國際恐怖主義」之間沒有關聯。
他補充說， “尚未確認有其他槍手”，並呼籲人們遵循警方的指示。
警方封鎖了該地區，並要求附近的人們留在家裡。
布拉格緊急服務部門於 X 日表示，「大量救護車」已部署在該學院。
Comments