Suspect in custody
Shots fired at US school: several dead and injured
Yet another school in the USA has been the scene of deadly violence: Four people were killed and nine others injured in a gun attack at Apalachee High School in Georgia on Wednesday. Authorities arrested a suspect; according to CNN, the suspected shooter is believed to be only 14 years old. Attorney General Merrick Garland spoke of a "terrible tragedy".
The attack took place at Apalachee High School near the town of Winder, around 70 kilometers northeast of the capital Atlanta. Nothing was initially known about the possible motives of the shooter. The students were gradually evacuated from the school building and gathered at a sports field.
Shooter in police custody
The shooter is in police custody, it was further reported. According to unconfirmed reports, he is a 14-year-old boy. It is not known whether he was a student at Apalachee High School.
Anonymous caller warned school
Injured people with gunshot wounds were treated in local hospitals, reports CNN. Among them are said to be minors. The school is said to have received an anonymous phone call the morning before the shooting. The caller is said to have warned the school administration of a possible rampage.
The grounds were cordoned off
Further background information and the course of events are still unclear. The school informed the parents of the pupils that the building had been cordoned off because of the shots.
Parents were asked not to come to the school under any circumstances. In the meantime, however, most of them have been able to embrace their children again.
"Saw blood and a corpse"
A 17-year-old student told ABC how he and his classmates locked the door to their classroom and hid there while screams could be heard outside.
One student told Fox 5 News he saw blood on the floor and a dead body as he was led out of the building. When the first shots were fired, he initially thought it was a "fake". But then he "heard more shots and screams".
Biden: "Cannot accept this as normal"
US President Joe Biden explained that the day should have marked "the happy return" to the new school year in Winder. Instead, it was now "another terrible reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart". "We cannot continue to accept this as normal," the president said.
Gun violence is widespread in the US, with more firearms in circulation than the country's population. Deadly acts of violence and gun attacks occur again and again at schools. In May 2022, the Uvalde massacre in Texas shocked the US public. At the school there, an 18-year-old shot and killed 19 pupils and two teachers with a legally purchased assault rifle.
"Epidemic" of gun violence
During his time in office, Biden has repeatedly called on Congress to do something about this "epidemic" of violence. However, all attempts to tighten gun laws in the USA have so far failed due to massive political opposition, including from the gun lobby. They refer to the constitutional right of every US citizen to own and carry a gun.
According to the activist group Gun Violence Archive, there have already been 385 gun attacks with four or more victims this year. The organization puts the death toll from gun violence at 11,568 so far this year, with firearms now the leading cause of death among young US citizens.
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