- A student has been killed after a fellow learner opened fire at a Catholic school in Zamboanga City before taking his own life.
- Authorities have linked the attack to a wider pattern of school shootings in the Philippines, including a Tacloban City incident that killed three students.
- The Philippine Senate has launched an investigation into the effects of violent video games and social media on young people.
A student was killed after a fellow learner opened fire at a Catholic junior high school in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines before taking his own life, according to a local official.
Zamboanga City Mayor Khymer Adan Olaso said the suspect entered a classroom carrying a .45-calibre pistol and first fired at a teacher who was seated at a table, though the shot missed. The student then moved to another classroom, where he shot a fellow learner, who later succumbed to the injuries.
Local media circulated what was described as livestream footage of the incident, which appeared to show a first-person view of a gun being carried along a school hallway, according to AFP. Authorities said the situation had since been brought under control and there was no longer an active shooter at the school.
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The incident comes two months after another school shooting in Tacloban City in the central Philippines, where three students were killed and 20 others injured. Two teenage boys were identified as suspects in that attack, with one of them reported to have regularly played Gorebox, a violent online game that has since been banned in the Philippines.
The Philippine Senate is investigating the possible effects of violent computer games on young people, amid growing concern over exposure to violent content. The debate has also extended to social media use among minors, with several governments across Southeast Asia considering tighter restrictions over concerns about its effects on children and teenagers.
Earlier this month, a teenager in Thailand killed eight people before taking his own life at a school. Authorities said he had consumed violent content on social media before the attack.
The latest shooting is therefore likely to intensify calls for stronger measures to protect young people from access to firearms and exposure to violent online content.
By Jonathan Mwinzi
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