Two days after a gunman killed 14 individuals and injured a minimum of 25 others on the School of Arts constructing belonging to Prague’s Charles College, the Czech Republic held a day of mourning to recollect the victims.
Flags have been flying at half mast on Saturday and bells tolled at midday. The general public noticed a minute’s silence for individuals who misplaced their lives. At 11 a.m., a requiem was held in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, chaired by Prague Archbishop Jan Graubner and attended by President Petr Pavel, who known as for the day of mourning. Video footage streamed by Czech TV confirmed the church filled with mourners amid hymns and speeches.
At 3 p.m., one other ecumenical prayer and second of silence is scheduled to happen at Kostel sv. Martina ve zdi (Church of St Martin within the Wall).
“My ideas are nonetheless with households of the victims, injured and those that needed to struggle for his or her lives on the School of Arts,” Pavel mentioned by way of social media on Friday. “Nobody can think about the concern and psychological pressure they went by yesterday. From the underside of my coronary heart, I want to thank [you] for the honest condolences and phrases of assist, which come from all around the globe.”
A police investigation has been launched, trying into the crime that shocked the comparatively protected nation with few mass shootings. On Thursday, the gunman killed 14 individuals and injured 25 earlier than killing himself.
Police haven’t but launched the names of the victims. The college confirmed that two of its employees members have been killed and the Lidove Noviny day by day mentioned its worker, a first-year pupil, had additionally been killed, the Related Press reported. Three overseas nationals—two from the United Arab Emirates and one from the Netherlands—have been among the many injured, the Czech Overseas Ministry mentioned.
Police mentioned the gunman acted alone and was not related to worldwide terrorism. The gunman is believed to have killed his father earlier within the day. Police are additionally investigating the gunman’s connection to the killing of a person and baby in a forest on Dec. 15, with police saying on X that the weapon utilized in that capturing was a match to a gun present in the home the place the college shooter lived.
Gun deaths are far much less widespread within the Czech Republic than within the U.S., knowledge exhibits. In keeping with police, the gunman legally owned a number of weapons. The nation has looser gun legal guidelines than different European nations, however gun house owners should nonetheless cross a check, background test and well being clearance, and might have weapons taken away over psychological well being issues. The federal government added this final test after a 2015 mass capturing, the nation’s earlier deadliest, the place a shooter killed eight individuals earlier than himself.
As police and politicians proceed to analyze what led to the capturing, the neighborhood was offering areas to mourn and mentally course of the tragedy.
Police began an emergency quantity to supply assist to the scholars’ kin at +420 974 823 158, the Czech Overseas Ministry mentioned. Charles College was offering psychological assist and counseling to these affected, and taking donations by its basis to assist the households of victims, college students and academics.
The Prague Archbishop additionally arrange a hotline for religious counsel for individuals impacted.
The Czech Overseas Ministry has arrange an digital e-book of condolences to permit individuals from around the globe to ship messages to [email protected].