A Grade 7 student shot dead a classmate before taking his own life at Ateneo de Zamboanga University in the southern Philippines. The gunman reportedly carried two firearms and livestreamed part of the attack, while authorities investigate how the weapons were brought onto campus.
Two students died in a shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University Junior High School in Zamboanga City, southern Philippines, this morning, August 18. One of those killed was the suspected gunman, a Grade 7 student.
Zamboanga City Mayor Khymer Adan Olaso said preliminary information showed that the student entered the campus carrying two firearms, described as a high-powered gun and a .45-calibre pistol. The incident occurred at around 8.30am, according to the mayor.
Video being examined by investigators reportedly showed the student first firing towards a teacher who was sitting at a table. Olaso said the shot appeared to miss.
The student then moved to another classroom, drew the .45-calibre pistol and shot another student, who later died. The gunman subsequently turned the weapon on himself.
The mayor also confirmed that the student was wearing a body camera and appeared to be livestreaming the attack. Video circulated by local media showed a gun barrel moving along a school corridor before shots were fired into a classroom, prompting students to scream and flee. The social media account linked to the alleged gunman was later disabled.
Information on additional casualties remained unclear as authorities continued checking the scene.
Olaso told local radio that two other people may have been injured. The Associated Press separately reported two injuries based on information from the mayor. However, Ateneo de Zamboanga University president Ernald Andal said during an earlier briefing that no additional injuries had been confirmed beyond the two fatalities.
An earlier report by Philstar cited local media claiming nine people had been injured, although the figure had not been independently confirmed.
Authorities have therefore not yet released a definitive injury toll.
Ateneo de Zamboanga University confirmed that the situation was under control and that there was no longer an active shooter on campus. Parents and guardians were asked to collect their children while school officials and police accounted for students remaining inside the university grounds.
Mayor Olaso suspended classes following the attack. The Zamboanga City government said police, school officials and local authorities were coordinating their response and urged the public not to circulate unverified photographs, videos or rumours while the investigation was ongoing.
Police are investigating the motive for the shooting and how the Grade 7 student obtained and brought the two firearms into the school.
The attack comes less than two months after another deadly school shooting in the Philippines. On June 22, two students aged 15 and 14 opened fire at San Jose National High School in Tacloban City, killing three students and injuring about 20 others. Authorities later began reviewing school security and emergency procedures following the attack.
Ateneo de Zamboanga University had itself conducted an active-shooter simulation exercise only last month, training staff and students in lockdown procedures and emergency response.
The Zamboanga shooting remains under investigation and casualty figures may be updated as authorities release further information.
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The story Grade 7 student kills classmate, himself in Zamboanga school shooting as seen on Thaiger News.
