‘Terror’ as Swedish school shooting leaves 11 dead, including gunman

Students prayed under their desks and trapped teachers sent desperate texts to loved ones when a gunman opened fire at an adult education centre in Sweden, leaving 11 people dead.

Armed police exchanged shots with the suspect at the Risbergska School, an adult campus in the city of Orebro, some 125 miles west of Stockholm.

The horrific attack – described by prime minister Ulf Kristersson as the worst mass shooting in Swedish history – unfolded on Tuesday after many students had gone home following a national exam.

Andreas Sundling, 28, was one of the people forced to barricade themselves inside the school. Speaking to the Expressen newspaper while sheltering in a classroom, he said: “We heard three bangs and loud screams. Now we’re sitting here waiting to be evacuated from the school. The information we have received is that we should sit and wait.”

One horrified parent told Swedish media his daughter saw blood at the scene as teachers helped students flee to safety. Pupils were being sheltered in nearby buildings as emergency services scoured the site.

Police told Expressen that there was an exchange of gunfire between police and the perpetrator. A series of loud bangs can be heard in footage shared on social media, claiming to be from the scene, as the person recording says “Oh my God”.

The school, called Campus Risbergska, serves students aged 20 and above, according to its website. Primary and upper secondary school courses are offered, as well as Swedish classes for immigrants, vocational training and programmes for people with intellectual disabilities.

Johannes Sjöberg, whose daughter is a student at Risbergska, told Swedish broadcaster SVT she was in the school and saw blood.

“We have been in touch by text message the whole time,” he said. “She arrived at the school five minutes before the whole thing and has been very scared but feels calm and safe and has been praying to God the whole time.”

Another local who knows a teacher told newspaper Aftonbladet that he sent a text message as panic ensued inside.

“He wrote that there was shooting with automatic weapons at the school and that they had taken shelter in a room,” they said. “Then he wrote that he loved me.”

Police believe the perpetrator is among those killed in the school shooting, and that he acted alone.

“At the moment we are confident that no more attacks will occur. The schools that were occupied have been evacuated,” police chief Roberto Eid Forest said, according to broadcaster SVT.

Police said there was no suspected connection to terrorism at this point but couldn’t rule out the possibility. The perpetrator is thought to have acted alone and was not previously known to police.

In reports on the shooting, TV4 News said the suspect was aged 35 and had a weapons licence. News outlet Expressen said people who knew him described him as a “loner”.

Authorities were working to identify the dead and provide an exact death toll.

Writing on X about the “terrible act of violence”, Sweden’s prime minister said: “It is a very painful day for all of Sweden. My thoughts are also with all those whose normal school day was replaced with terror. Being confined to a classroom with fear for your own life is a nightmare that no one should have to experience.”

Speaking later at a press conference, he hailed the courage of first responders and those caught up in the “heinous” attack, telling the victims: “Your grief is our grief. We are here with you.”

Justice minister Gunnar Strömmer called the shooting “an event that shakes our entire society to its core”, and said that police were being assisted by Sweden’s security services in their search for answers.

King Carl XVI Gustaf praised police and the rescue and medical personnel who responded to the shooting, and offered words of comfort to the families of the victims.

“It is with sadness and dismay that my family and I have received the information about the terrible atrocity in Orebro,” he said in a statement. “We send our condolences tonight to the families and friends of the deceased. Our thoughts at this time also go to the injured and their relatives, as well as to others affected.”

Since 1986, The Independent has campaigned for what we believe in, not what we are told to believe, with integrity, inclusion, innovation and independence as our guiding principles.

Source » msn.com