Three killed and eight injured in Philippines school shooting
A school in Banga, a southern area in the Philippines, was targeted by a 16-year-old suspected gunman who turned the gun on himself, provincial officials said.
At least three people have been killed, and eight injured, in a shooting at Banga National High School in the Philippines on Friday.
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All the victims are students aged 14 to 17, said Albert Palencia, mayor of Banga town in South Cotabato, where the shooting took place.
The incident follows two similar gun incidents since June at schools in the Philippines, a country where shootings as such were previously rare.
Mr Palencia said: "The suspect supposedly sat beside his friends and told them to go home 'because after lunch, I will be executing my plan'. His friends laughed because the shooter was a known joker."
Following this comment, the shooter shot 10 students before killing himself, according to Mr Palencia.
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South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo said: "We need to be responsible in storing firearms. Gun owners, in particular, must make sure that minors do not have access to them."
He added: "We cannot expect a handful of security personnel to monitor thousands of students. We need to work together because otherwise this will be very difficult for us to address."
This is the third deadly school shooting in the Philippines since June this year.
Last month, a student live-streamed himself shooting a student in a classroom in Zamboanga, also in the south of the Philippines, before killing himself.
In June, three students were killed and about 20 injured in another attack at a public high school, where two students opened fire on campus.
The Philippines holds strict gun ownership regulations, requiring background checks and psychological evaluations, although illegal firearms remain active.