At least 10 killed in Sweden's 'worst mass shooting,' prime minister says

A school shooting in Sweden has resulted in at least 10 fatalities, with the Swedish Prime Minister condemning it as a "brutal" attack. Police believe the shooter is among the dead and acted alone, which is still under investigation.

The deadly attack occurred shortly before 1 p.m. local time on Tuesday at Risbergska school in Örebro, a city 200 kilometers west of Stockholm. The campus houses multiple schools providing education for children and adults alike.

During the shooting, students were forced to hide under desks and flee the school to seek safety. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stated in a press conference: "Today, we have witnessed brutal, deadly violence against completely innocent people. This is one of the worst mass shootings in Swedish history."

Police have not yet classified the shooting as terrorism, but have stated that the shooter's motive is still unclear. Local Police Chief Roberto Eid Forest told reporters: "We know that around 10 people have died here today. We cannot be more precise at the moment because the scope of the incident is very large. As for making further comments about the perpetrator, it is too early for that now."

School teacher Maria Pegado, 54, said that shortly after lunch break, someone opened her classroom door and shouted for everyone to get out. "I took my 15 students out into the corridor, and we started running," she told Reuters by telephone. "Then I heard two gunshots, but we got out anyway. We were close to the school entrance. I saw people dragging out injured people, first one, then another. I realized the situation was very serious."

A spokesperson stated at a press conference that the first police officers to arrive on the scene encountered smoke. Students were forced to take shelter in nearby buildings during the attack. The rest of the school was quickly evacuated. Andreas Sandlin, 28, was one of those forced to barricade himself inside the school. "We heard three loud bangs and loud screams," he told Expressen while sheltering in a classroom. "Now we are sitting here waiting to be evacuated from the school. The information we have received is that we should sit and wait." Police stated that no officers were shot in the violence.

According to the school's website, it caters to students over the age of 20. It offers elementary and high school courses, as well as Swedish language courses for immigrants, vocational training, and programs for people with intellectual disabilities. Sweden has been facing a series of shootings and explosions stemming from local gang crime problems, although deadly attacks at schools remain rare. Data from the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention shows that between 2010 and 2022, there were seven incidents of deadly violence at schools, resulting in 10 deaths. One of the most notable incidents in the past decade was in 2015, when a 21-year-old masked attacker, motivated by racism, killed a teaching assistant and a boy, and injured two others.