This article's lead section contains information that is not included elsewhere in the article. (August 2024) |
On August 21, 2024, a school shooting occurred inside the Sanski Most Gymnasium,[2] located in Sanski Most, Bosnia and Herzegovina, when the perpetrator opened fire on three school employees. The shooter was identified as 50-year-old Mehmed Vukalić, a man working as a janitor, armed with an automatic rifle.[3] After the shooting, he attempted to commit suicide by shooting himself in the chest, but was captured while doing so and taken into medical custody. Vukalić is currently in a non-life-threatening situation, and being held at the University Clinical Center of the Republika Srpska in Banja Luka.[4] The incident is currently the deadliest school shooting in Bosnian history.
| Sanski Most school shooting | |
|---|---|
 Police in the front of the school following the shooting. | |
| |
| Location | Sanski Most Gymasium, Sanski Most, Una-Sana Canton, Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Coordinates | 44°46′4″N 16°39′27″E / 44.76778°N 16.65750°E |
| Date | August 21, 2024 c. 10:15 a.m. |
Attack type | School shooting, mass shooting, mass murder, triple murder, attempted suicide |
| Weapon | Automatic rifle |
| Deaths | 3 |
| Injured | 1 (the perpetrator) |
| Perpetrator | Mehmed Vukalić[1] |
| Motive | Under investigation, possibly retaliation for personal disputes |
Background
editSmall arms and weapons have been frequently trafficked in the Balkans since the Yugoslav Wars. Per a 2010 study executed by the United Nations Development Programme, there were around 750,000 illegally owned weapons in Bosnia and Herzegovina.[2] Mass shootings are a relatively rare occurrence in the Balkans, but they had lately seen a small rise, including the Daruvar shooting in neighboring Croatia and the Mladenovac and Smederevo shootings and Belgrade school shooting, both in neighboring Serbia.[4]
Some school employees reported that the suspect had entered into disputes with the school management[2] and was suffering from Post-traumatic stress disorder after serving in the Bosnian War.[4]
Victims
editThe deceased victims were identified as:[2]
- Nijaz Halilović, school director
- Gordana Midžan, English teacher
- Nisveta Kljunić, secretary
See also
edit- Valparaíso school shootings, a 1999 mass shooting with a similar motive and duplicate fatality count
References
edit- ^ "Ovo je domar koji je ubio direktora, profesorku i sekretaricu u gimnaziji u Sanskom Mostu (FOTO)". Nova.rs (in rs). 2024-08-21.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ a b c d "Three teachers killed in Bosnia school shooting". euronews. 2024-08-21. Retrieved 2024-08-21.
- ^ "School employee kills at least 3 people in a Bosnian town, police say". AP News. 2024-08-21. Retrieved 2024-08-21.
- ^ a b c "Three staff killed in shooting in school in Bosnia". SWI swissinfo.ch. 2024-08-21. Retrieved 2024-08-21.