Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
A 12-year-old schoolgirl who was critically wounded in a shooting at a high school outside Bangkok has died in hospital, taking the death toll in the attack to at least eight. The shooting took place on Friday at Debsirin Nonthaburi School in Nonthaburi province, where a 14-year-old student allegedly opened fire before apparently taking his own life.
Officials said the boy also appeared to have killed his two grandparents at his family home earlier that morning. Thailand’s Health Ministry said 14 people remain in hospital and seven of them were still in critical condition on Saturday. Most of the injured are between 12 and 14 years old.
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The shooting happened at around 10 am on Friday. The school had posted a message on Facebook the same day seeking blood donations for two students, including the girl, who was in seventh grade.
Relatives claimed the bodies of eight people from Bangkok’s Institute of Forensic Medicine on Saturday. They included five school staff members, the accused shooter and his grandparents. Emergency workers brought out a coffin and loaded it onto an ambulance, which will take the bodies to their hometowns for funeral rites. The girl’s body is yet to be released.
Wiroon Supasingsiripreecha, head of the institute, said most of the victims suffered a single fatal gunshot wound to a vital area, including the chest or head. He said the gunshot wound on the alleged shooter was consistent with the weapon he had used. More detailed forensic findings, including toxicology results, are expected later, he said.
Officials said the gun, described as small and compact, was legally registered to the boy’s grandfather. There were reports that the boy, who lived with his grandparents, had shown signs of stress linked to school, although some relatives told Thai media they were unaware of any problems he may have been facing.
The co-educational state school, which has about 3,000 students aged 12 to 18, said all classes would remain suspended from August 10 to 14. School staff were told to work from home during that time.
A few mourners laid flowers at the school’s gate on Saturday morning, where a few police officers were present. Charin Siriananchai brought his two sons, aged 9 and 6, to pay their respects. He said that while his sons do not study there, he lives in the neighbourhood and drives past the school almost every day, often stopping to let students cross the road.
“Everyone was saddened and shocked, because it was unexpected that this would happen in Thailand, and also it’s quite a great loss,” he said.
Some parents also came with their children to collect belongings left behind after the shooting. A father, who declined to identify himself, said his son, who was at the school during the shooting, was still in shock and could not sleep alone.
Thailand has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in Asia, behind only Pakistan and well above its neighbours in Southeast Asia. Data collected in 2017 by Small Arms Survey and GunPolicy.org in their last extensive international study showed civilian gun ownership in Thailand at about 15.1 guns per 100 people, compared with less than one per 100 in neighbouring Malaysia.
Thailand recorded 3.49 deaths by firearms per 100,000 people, according to 2023 statistics published by World Population Review. While that is lower than in parts of Latin America and the Caribbean, it is relatively high in Asia. Only the Philippines is higher in Southeast Asia.
Shootings involving indiscriminate killings are not common in Thailand, but the country has seen a rise in high-profile shooting deaths in recent years. In February, a 17-year-old stole a gun from police and opened fire at a public high school in southern Thailand, briefly taking people hostage in a two-hour attack that killed one person and wounded two others. A 14-year-old boy was also accused in the 2023 shooting at a major shopping mall in Bangkok. The latest attack has left at least eight people dead, several others in hospital and the school shut for the coming week.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
