PRAGUE -- A minute of silence was observed across the Czech Republic at noon on December 23 as the country held a national day of mourning to honor the victims of the worst mass shooting in its recent history.
Flags were being flown at half-mast on public buildings and black ribbons were attached. Many pre-Christmas events were canceled, and state television channels ran a special program as condolence messages came in from all over the world.
The shooting inside the Faculty of Arts of Charles University in the capital, Prague, on December 21 left 14 dead, police said. A total of 25 people were wounded, including three foreign nationals.
Meanwhile, the Czech capital remained tense during the day following a phoned-in bomb threat targeting Prague’s main airport, leading to a suspension of operations. Authorities later declared the threat a hoax after searching the facility, and flight operations resumed.
The December 21 shooting inside the Faculty of Arts of Charles University in Prague left 14 dead, police said. A total of 25 people were wounded, including three foreign nationals.
According to police, 13 people died at the scene and one died in a hospital. The shooter, who killed himself as police closed in, was a student at the Faculty of Arts.
Authorities said they have evidence the 24-year-old gunman -- a Czech national -- also killed a man and a baby in Prague last week, and shot dead his own father in their hometown of Hostoun west of Prague hours before going on a killing spree at the university.
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Prague Remains In Shock As More Details Of Killer Emerge
In Prague, people began paying their respects to the victims on December 22 by lighting candles outside Charles University buildings. Fellow students, friends of the victims, and others gathered for an impromptu vigil. Some knelt to light candles and lay flowers, while others cried and hugged each other.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala and U.S. Ambassador Bijan Sabet were among those who paid tribute to the victims.
"It is hard to find the words to express condemnation on the one hand and, on the other, the pain and sorrow that our entire society is feeling in these days before Christmas," Fiala said.
The university’s rector, Milena Kralickova, was also among the throngs of people at the vigil. The academic community, she said, had been "shaken, deeply shaken” by the shooting.
Interior Minister Vit Rakusan said all 14 victims of the shooting have been identified. The university confirmed two staff members were among the dead, including the head of the Institute of Music Sciences, Lenka Hlavkova. First-year student Lucie Spindlerova was another, said the Lidove noviny daily, where she also worked.
Authorities said the shooter had no criminal record, and police have released no details about a possible motive. Investigators said they found no link to any extremist ideology or groups and believe he acted alone.
Following the attack, the national police announced they have increased security around public buildings and schools, which are closed for the Christmas holiday, across the country. Lectures and events at Charles University were canceled.
The national police stressed that the measures were preventive and that no specific threats had been identified.
The Czech newspaper Hospodarske noviny, citing a police report it had viewed, reported that the gunman had been treated in the past for psychological problems and legally owned 12 weapons, including a semiautomatic rifle, a shotgun, and pistols along with silencers.
The police report said that the gunman arrived at the university with a suitcase full of ammunition. Police said he had a license to own eight guns, including two long guns.
When asked at a news conference how it was possible the shooter had such a number of weapons, Tomas Kubik, a deputy police chief said: “We will have to figure out if it’s a result of a flaw in the system or human error.”