Czech Republic, close to Prague —  Prague was in shock and sadness on Friday following the biggest peacetime incident in Czech Republic history, which left a shooter at Charles University with 14 fatalities and 25 injuries.

Not only was Thursday’s horrific occurrence the first school or college shooting in Czech history, but it also shocked the country and its senior leaders.

Friday morning in Prague felt gloomy and empty, unlike the joyful winter paradise it had been only the day before. Despite a lot of snow and rain, a temporary monument made of candles and flowers was erected at the university’s historic offices overnight, and people started showing up early in the morning to pay their condolences.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala addressed the country on Thursday, referring to the massacre as “a senseless attack” and predicting a “unimaginably sad” Christmas.

“This inexplicable and brutal violence is causing me, along with many others, to feel profound sorrow and disgust,” Fiala stated. “Deep sadness and also helpless anger over the loss of so many young lives,” said Czech President Petr Pavel.

A Vatican statement issued on Friday indicated that Pope Francis was “deeply saddened” to hear of the incident.

“His Divine Rightness The statement read, “Pope Francis acknowledges his spiritual connection to all affected by this tragedy.”

Petr Matęjček, the chief of Prague police, announced the gunman’s death by suicide during a news conference on Friday. The shooter was a 24-year-old student at the university. The cops have still not disclosed his identity.

“I visited the attacker’s scene and was startled and outraged. Additionally, I have worked for the police for forty years,” Matęjček said reporters.

“I can only thank my officers for their quick action—many more deaths were avoided when I saw the amount of ammunition, the weapons he brought, and what he was prepared for.”

Martin Vondrášek, the chief of Czech police, stated during a press conference on Friday that in his 35 years as a police officer, he had “never seen anything as horrifying” as the shooting at Charles University in Prague, which resulted in 14 fatalities and 25 injuries.

According to him, 13 individuals perished at the site and one passed away while being transported to the hospital.

Vondrášek stated that in the wake of the 2011 terror events in Norway, the Czech police started frequent and ongoing training for active shooter scenarios.

He remarked, “That’s when we realized that this kind of thing can happen anywhere.” “I promise you that there is always active shooter training taking place in the Czech Republic,” he declared.

Vondrášek commended the emergency services and police for their quick response, stating that it probably saved many lives.

Following the incident, Vít Rakušan, the interior minister of the nation, issued an impassioned plea to the people of Czechoslovakia to get mental health treatment and refrain from disseminating misleading information.

“Please ask for assistance. Numerous materials are available. Rakušan addressed a press conference, saying, “The Czech National Institute for Mental Health offers several resources, particularly guides on what to do in crisis— and this is a crisis.”

Seeking assistance is not a sign of weakness. It’s OK to seek expert assistance. Do not hesitate to do this, please,” he continued.

Additionally, Rakušan requested the public and media to refrain from disseminating information about the gunman and the specifics of the shooting, citing international history as evidence that doing so might spark similar assaults.

“Refrain from giving the offender what he requested. Don’t give him the limelight, and don’t allow anyone to be moved by this gesture,” he uttered.

Following the fatal event, Czech police said they have increased security around the nation.

Police stated in a statement on Friday, “We have adopted nationwide precautionary measures in concerning schools and other soft targets,” and they added that they were not aware of any particular threats.

The building’s surroundings are well-liked by visitors and in close proximity to important sites. It is only five minutes’ walk from the Old Town Square, home of Prague’s renowned Christmas Markets, and directly over the Vltava River from Prague Castle. The structure is within just a few hundred meters from the old Jewish Quarter.

Authorities are currently looking into the cause of the rampage, which happened at Charles University’s Faculty of Arts building. The school is one of the first colleges established when the institution was formed in 1348 and is known as the Faculty of Philosophy in Czech. Languages, philosophy, art theory, and history are among the subjects taught there.

According to police, all 14 fatalities have been identified as of Friday noon.

The school’s Department of Musicology declared that Lenka Hlávková, the director, was one of the victims of the shooting. Hlávková was a well-known authority on medieval central European music culture, and the department declared in a statement that the news of her passing was “extremely cruel.”

The first-year student of Czech and Deaf studies, Lucie Špindlerová, was one of the newspaper’s staffers who was murdered in the incident, according to a statement released by Lidové Noviny, the national daily newspaper of the Czech Republic.

A picture of Špindlerová that was released by the newspaper features a happy, youthful woman posing with a big hat on and inhaling the scent of blossoming flowers.

Špindlerová was described in the newspaper as “a colleague and, most importantly, a friend” and her passing was described as “extremely painful news.”

The other victims’ names have not been made public.

Two citizens of the United Arab Emirates and one citizen of the Netherlands were among the three foreign nationals injured in the incident, a spokesman with the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs said  on Friday.

The course of the shooting

The head of police said that before to the killings at the university, they had information about the gunman. They stated they had got a tip that he was about to commit himself while going from his birthplace of Hostouň to Prague.

A little later, word reached the police that a man in Hostouň had been discovered dead; it was thought to be the gunman’s father.

According to Vondrášek, the police evacuated the building where the gunman was scheduled to give a lecture at 2:00 p.m. local time. But the police chief said that shortly after, they got a call reporting gunfire in a separate building.

Body camera footage of Czech police scouring hallways and removing people from buildings during the reaction to the mass shooting was made public on Friday. A classroom where several of the victims were discovered is also depicted.

The possibility that the gunman is linked to the double homicide that occurred in Klanovice, a suburb of Prague, last week—where a man and a two-month-old infant were discovered slain in a forest—is also being investigated by Czech officials. The police chiefs stated in a statement on Friday that they thought this was “extremely likely.”

According to Vondrášek, the shooter possessed multiple firearms and a gun permit.

Though gun assaults are uncommon, the Czech Republic has very lax firearms legislation when compared to the rest of the EU. A person needs an official firearms license in order to lawfully purchase a gun. This license involves passing a weapon proficiency exam, a medical assessment, and having no prior criminal history.

Reforms aimed at tightening gun restrictions are now being addressed in Parliament, according to Rakušan, and the legislative process started before to Thursday’s shooting incident.

According to Rakušan, the amended law would make it simpler for law enforcement to seize firearms when they had knowledge about possible threats. Additionally, it would compel gun dealers by law to disclose any anomalous acquisitions of firearms, including purchases of substantial quantities of ammunition.

A firearm license is now required in the Czech Republic in order to lawfully purchase a weapon. People must pass both a medical test and a weapon proficiency exam in order to obtain a license. According to Rakušan, the suggested revisions would include a psychiatric test and a harsher medical check. A spotless criminal record is a prerequisite for obtaining a license. Police figures show that about 300,000 persons in the 10 million-person nation are licensed gun owners.

Official police figures show that over 300,000 people legally possess firearms. Nearly a million lawfully owned firearms were officially registered in the Czech Republic as of 2022.