Shooting at Russian university leaves at least 6 dead, 24 injured

Russia’s Investigative Committee, a law enforcement agency, said the attacker was a student and was apprehended following the incident.

Witnesses described hearing panicked screams and the sound of gunshots popping repeatedly as some students ran to safety and others barricaded themselves in classrooms.

The attack, which came as the country awaited results from Russia’s parliamentary elections, dominated headlines on Monday in the country, where shootings are relatively rare. Russia has strict laws on civilian gun ownership and requires people to pass psychological exams before obtaining a license for hunting and sport firearms.

In May, nine people died and 20 others were injured when a gunman opened fire at a school in the city of Kazan, prompting Russian President Vladimir Putin to order a tightening of gun laws.

Irina Volk, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs said the first responders on the scene were traffic police. She said the attacker fired several shots at the officers and was wounded in return fire. “The suspect has been identified. During the arrest in connection with the resistance, he was wounded,” a statement shared Monday morning local time read.

Ivan Pechishchev, a professor at the university, told the BBC that those attempting to flee the scene jumped from second-floor windows, screaming. “One of the students told me that it was a shooting,” he said. “I heard pops, everyone began to scatter in different directions.”

Semyon Karyakin, a student who witnessed the attack told Reuters: “There were about 60 people in the classroom. We closed the door and barricaded it with chairs.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was up to law enforcement to establish reasons for the Perm attack. “But apparently, we are talking about some deviations in the young man who committed this murder, and I think experts should deal with this and try to understand what was the reason for this tragedy,” he said.

Peskov said that while laws on obtaining weapons had been tightened, “unfortunately a tragedy has occurred, and it must be analyzed.”

According to the Associated Press, the Perm State University’s press service said the attacker used what’s known as a “traumatic” firearm — a kind of gun designed to fire rubber or plastic projectiles that can be modified to fire other ammunition.

The Kremlin said Putin ordered a ministerial delegation to the area to help support the families of the victims. Perm State University, one of the oldest universities in Russia, is based roughly 800 miles east of Moscow.

One of the most shocking — and deadly — attacks in Russia’s history occurred at a school attack in Beslan, southwest Russia, in September 2004.

Thirty Chechen militants raided the building, taking children, teachers and parents hostage. After a three-day standoff, Russian troops stormed the school, which resulted in a bloodbath in which more than 300 people were killed, many of them children.

Russian authorities were later found to have breached human rights laws, the European Court of Human Rights later said, citing the use of excessive force that “contributed to the casualties among the hostages.”

Robyn Dixon reported from Moscow.

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