Turkiye will hold funerals for nine victims killed in a school shooting by a 14-year-old, an attack that has sent shockwaves across the country, with authorities saying the suspect had referenced a US mass killer in a WhatsApp profile image.
The attack in the southern province of Kahramanmaras was Turkiye’s second such incident this week in a country where such shootings have been rare.
The 14-year-old armed entered two classrooms and opened fire randomly as officials said he carried five guns.
The funerals will take place in the city of Kahramanmaras for eight children aged 10 and 11 and a 55-year-old teacher, the local authorities said.
Teachers protest
Thousands of teachers protested in Turkiye on Thursday after two school shootings in two days left the country reeling, with the authorities cracking down on social media as crowds gathered for the funerals of nine victims of the second shooting.
“I feel terrible. In front of my eyes, so many children were jumping, coming out injured, covered in blood,” one woman who lives nearby said, telling AFP she had followed what happened from her balcony.
Some 3,500 teachers gathered in the capital Ankara to call for the education minister to quit, some shouting “Blood has stained my profession” and others chanting: “Where were you while the children were dying.”
Teenager referenced US mass killer
Police said the teenager had referenced US mass killer Elliot Rodger in a photo on his WhatsApp profile.
“Initial findings from the investigation revealed that the perpetrator used an image on his WhatsApp profile referencing Elliot Rodger, who carried out an attack in the United States in 2014,” the police said in a statement.
Rodger, a 22-year-old American, killed six people on the campus of the University of California, Santa Barbara, before taking his own life.
Rodger explained in a video released before his crime that the attack was “punishment” for the women who had rejected him.
The 14-year-old who carried out Wednesday’s shooting died at the scene, officials said, though it was not clear how his death happened.
The father of teenager, identified as a former police inspector, was arrested on Wednesday and taken into custody, the police said.
“Digital media seized during searches of the perpetrator’s home and his father’s vehicle have been confiscated and are currently being analyzed,” the police said.
“Based on initial findings, no link to terrorism has been established. This appears to be an isolated act.”
Schools will remain closed in Kahramanmaras on Thursday and Friday.
Police order arrests
Police said they had ordered dozens of arrests for people accused of posting controversial content on social media after the two deadly school shootings.
“Arrest orders were issued for 83 individuals found to have engaged in posts and activities praising crime and criminals and negatively affecting public order, and legal action has been taken against them,” the police said in a statement.
In addition, access to 940 social media accounts has been blocked, and 93 Telegram groups have been shut down, it added.
On Tuesday, a student opened fire at his former high school in the Siverek district in the southeast, wounding 16 people including students before killing himself.
The incidents in a row this week triggered protests.
Dozens of members of the main teachers’ unions gathered Wednesday evening outside the education ministry in Ankara and called for a two-day strike across Turkiye.
They carried banner reading “We will not surrender our schools to violence.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed sadness over Wednesday’s “tragic attack” but promised the incident would be shed light “in all its aspects.”
