The forensic service of the Czech police has already identified the 13 victims of the attack carried out on Thursday at a university in Prague, where a Czech student began shooting indiscriminately at his classmates, before committing suicide.
The attacker who opened fire at Charles University in Prague killed 13 people before committing suicide, authorities announced, revising the number of victims, which had been set at 14.
“We know the identities of the dead. There are 13 victims of the mad shooter, in addition to himself,” Interior Minister Vit Rakusan said on Czech public television, and police later confirmed that the shooter committed suicide.
Among the victims are three foreign citizens, whose nationality was not revealed, but was reported to the respective embassies, authorities said.
The attack began around 3:30 p.m. local time (2:30 p.m. in Lisbon) on Thursday, in a building located near the Faculty of Arts, in the historic center of the Czech capital, where important tourist sites are located, such as the Charles Bridge, the XIV century. The motives for the crime and the weapons used are still unknown (the murderer took a suitcase with an arsenal of ammunition to the university).
According to Police Chief Martin Vondrasek, police began searching for the young man even before the shooting, after his father was found dead in the village of Hostoun, west of Prague.
The shooter “went to Prague saying he wanted to commit suicide,” he added.
A first search was carried out in the Faculty of Arts building, where the murderer was going to attend a class, but the young man went to another building and the authorities did not find him in time.
In addition to the dead, the shooting caused 25 injuries, nine of whom are in serious condition, but are now stabilized, according to hospital sources.
According to public broadcaster CT24, the victims suffered impacts to the head, sternum and extremities, and some had to undergo surgery.
This Friday morning, urban transport was restored in the area, around the famous Charles Bridge, after having been interrupted due to the attack.
Many people were at the scene this morning, where they came to light a candle in honor of the victims, and an outdoor space in the university rectory was designated as a place of prayer.
The Government has decreed that Saturday will be a “day of national mourning”, and at 12:00 the sirens will sound and a minute of silence will be observed.
The Ministry of the Interior also announced a reinforcement of preventive measures at the university, which involves the presence of armed security agents until January 1.
Minister Vit Rakusan also asked the press to be discreet with information about the suspect and not to publish his photos or information about the young man, so as not to incite other people to imitate his actions.
Source: TSF
