• Saturday, April 27, 2024

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Ten killed, many injured in Prague’s centuries-old university shooting; killer eliminated

The violence in the Czech city’s historic centre sparked panic, a massive police response and warnings for people to stay indoors.

An ambulance drives over a bridge towards the Charles University in central Prague, on December 21, 2023. (Photo by MICHAL CIZEK/AFP via Getty Images)

By: India Weekly

A GUNMAN killed 10 people and wounded dozens of others at a Prague university on Thursday (21), before the police “eliminated” him, authorities said.

The violence in the Czech city’s historic centre sparked panic, a massive police response and warnings for people to stay indoors.

The shooting happened at the Charles University’s Faculty of Arts, which sits near major tourist sites like the 14th-century Charles Bridge.

“At the moment I can say there are 11 dead people on the scene including the gunman,” emergency services spokeswoman Jana Postova told public Czech TV.

“The building is currently being evacuated and there are several dead and dozens of wounded people on the scene,” police said on X, formerly Twitter.

Emergency services preliminarily reported nine serious injuries, at least five mid-serious and up to 10 light injuries.

Interior Minister Vit Rakusan told public Czech TV the gunman was “probably dead”, citing “preliminary information”.

Prague’s emergency service said on X that “a large number of ambulance units” were deployed at the faculty, adding the injuries ranged from light to very serious.

The private Nova TV reported a blast and a gunman on the roof of the building in Prague’s historic centre.

Rakusan said “no other gunman has been confirmed” and called on people to follow police instructions.

Police closed the area and asked people living nearby to stay at home.

(AFP)

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