Seven children and a teacher have been killed in a shooting at a school in the Russian city of Kazan, reports say.
Police and paramedics work at the scene of a shooting at Gymnasium No. 175 in Kazan. Photo: AFP
Reports over the number of deaths varied, but officials said at least seven children had died. Many more were wounded and taken to hospital.
A teenager was detained after the attack at the school, located some 820km east of Moscow in the mainly Muslim republic of Tatarstan.
Authorities said security had been restored at the school in Kazan, in the mainly Muslim republic of Tatarstan.
Responding to the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would review Russia's gun control laws.
Police have opened an investigation. No motive has yet been established.
Heavily armed police and emergency vehicles responded to the shooting at School No 175 on Tuesday.
Footage shared on social media showed some children jumping from windows to escape as well as injured people being evacuated.
Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov described the shooting as a "disaster" and a "tragedy".
Minnikhanov said the victims included four male and three female eighth-grade students. His press service later added that a teacher was also killed.
He told reporters outside the school that 12 children and four adults were being treated in hospital.
"The terrorist has been arrested. He's 19. He's a registered firearm owner," he said.
One video on social media showed a teenager lying on the ground apparently being detained outside the building.
Задержание одного из нападавших. Видео: Readovka pic.twitter.com/GsQmBFvTIM
— МБХ медиа (@MBKhMedia) May 11, 2021
A student who witnessed the attack described what happened to Russian news website Mediazona.
"Everyone started panicking and saying 'shut the doors'. About a minute later the head teacher started yelling: 'We're shutting the doors!'
"We got out about 15 minutes later, not out of the windows. I wanted to do that, but the teacher closed the window immediately and said no," he said.
Reports initially said that there were two gunmen and that one of them had been killed. But officials later said there was only one suspect.
School shootings are relatively rare in Russia. One of the last major incidents happened in Russian-annexed Crimea in 2018.
- BBC
This story has been updated with a lower death toll after the release of new information by Russian authorities.
