3-day Mourning In Serbia For Victims Of School Shooting

The Government of Serbia on Wednesday declared three days of mourning for the shooting at an elementary school in Belgrade that claimed the lives of nine people (eight children) and injured seven others. 

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Education Minister Branko Ruzic said that "the Government has ordered to keep three days of mourning throughout Serbia from Friday, May 5, until Sunday, May 7," in order to "allow the families of the deceased to say goodbye to their loved ones in peace."

Classes tomorrow will begin with a minute of silence, the minister said, noting that as for today's afternoon, classes were suspended "on the occasion of the biggest tragedy that occurred in Serbia and in our education system in contemporary history."

The shooting took place in the center of the Serbian capital, at the Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school, at around 8.40 local time. A boy entered the school with a firearm and started shooting at random. Authorities noted that the perpetrator was carrying Molotov cocktails.

Eight children and a guard were killed, while six children and a teacher were injured. Health Minister Danica Grujicic said they are being treated in health institutions in Belgrade.

The perpetrator, a 13-year-old seventh-grader identified as K.K., planned the attack and waited for the day to come, authorities said. He called police and said he had shot several people at the elementary school, Belgrade police department chief Veselin Milic said.

"He chose the history classroom because it was close to the school entrance and his department had the first lesson, and he took the gun and weapons from his father's apartment," Milic said.

The Prosecutor's Office said that according to the Serbian Criminal Code, K.K., a minor with no criminal responsibility, will be under surveillance for two days on suspicion of endangering security.