By Oluwakemi Kindness
Two students have been killed in a school shooting in the Philippines on Tuesday after a ninth-grade student allegedly opened fire on a schoolmate before taking his own life.
The incident occurred at Ateneo de Zamboanga University, a Catholic private institution in western Mindanao.
Regional police spokeswoman Shella Chang said the suspect went to the victim’s classroom and shot the student.
He then went to the fifth floor of the school and shot himself.
Interior Secretary Victor Remulla confirmed that the suspect had livestreamed the incident on social media.
The alleged shooter’s Facebook account has since been disabled.
A video circulated by local media showed the barrel of a gun moving through a school hallway before being pointed into a classroom and fired.
Students in school uniforms were seen screaming and rushing towards an exit.
Authorities have not immediately said how many people were injured.
The National Police are investigating the motive for the shooting and how the firearm was obtained and brought onto the school campus.
Police have yet to release the ages of the suspect or the victim.
Ateneo de Zamboanga president, Father Guillrey Andal, confirmed the two fatalities and said the school was cooperating with the investigation.
He said the university was working with police to identify the victims and contact their families.
Andal said the incident had caused “deep concern and worry” among students, staff and other members of the school community.
He also said the school’s security team had been preparing a simulation exercise because of the importance of campus safety.
The shooting is the Philippines’ second school shooting in two months.
