MANILA: Three students were killed in a school shooting in the southern Philippines on Friday, including a 16-year-old student suspected of carrying out the attack before turning the gun on himself, provincial officials said.
Eight other students were injured in the shooting in Banga town in South Cotabato, with four in critical condition, Mayor Albert Palencia said. All the victims were aged between 14 and 17.
Palencia said the suspected gunman had reportedly sat with his friends before the attack and told them to go home because he planned to carry out the shooting after lunch. His friends did not take the statement seriously because he was known for joking, the mayor said.
After lunch, the student allegedly opened fire on other students, hitting 10 people before taking his own life, according to Palencia.
The incident comes amid a series of fatal gun attacks at schools in the Philippines, where such shootings have historically been relatively rare.
Last month, a student livestreamed himself shooting and killing another student inside a classroom in Zamboanga in the southern Philippines before taking his own life.
In June, at least three students were killed and around 20 others injured when two classmates opened fire at a public high school in Tacloban.
The Philippines has relatively strict regulations governing gun ownership, including background checks and psychological evaluations, although illegal firearms remain in circulation.
The latest shooting also follows a high-profile school shooting in Thailand in August, when a student reportedly went on a shooting rampage at a school on the outskirts of Bangkok.
South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo urged gun owners to ensure firearms were safely stored and kept out of the reach of minors.
He said authorities and communities needed to work together to prevent students from gaining access to firearms, noting that security personnel alone could not monitor thousands of students.
