14-year-old opens fire in French school, stopped by staff

A 14-year-old student opened fire Monday morning at the Joseph Lakanal secondary school in Aubagne, a town near Marseille in southern France, wounding the school principal and a teacher. Both victims were shot in the lower limbs and taken to hospital; their lives are not in danger, according to initial reports.

The incident began shortly after 9:00 a.m. when the student, a ninth-grader, entered the school grounds with a hunting rifle concealed inside a guitar case.

According to the preliminary investigation, he opened fire in a common area on the first floor, hitting the principal and the teacher who were in the hallway. Both were wounded in the legs and evacuated for medical treatment.

But the shooting did not end there. The Marseille prosecutor's office said the student then climbed to the second floor and fired twice more: once at the floor in the presence of a teacher, and once into a classroom where students were present, with the bullet striking the blackboard. Miraculously, no additional injuries were reported from these shots, though students and staff who witnessed the incident were left shaken.

Staff member overpowered the suspect

One of the most significant details of the incident is the intervention of a staff member at the school who, according to reports, managed to overpower the boy and disarm him as he was descending the stairs. Police then arrived and arrested the student, who was taken in for questioning.

Following the shooting, students were evacuated from the school in stages, and many parents arrived at the scene to collect their children. Some students who witnessed the incident described feelings of fear and shock. Authorities also provided psychological support to students affected by the traumatic experience.

One of the central questions investigators are trying to answer is what led the boy to carry out the attack. According to reports in the French media, a claim emerged during questioning that the student felt he was being bullied by others at the school. However, the prosecutor's office emphasized that the motive has not yet been established and it is still unknown whether he intended to target the staff members specifically.

The chief prosecutor in Marseille said the boy has not yet provided a clear explanation for his actions. According to her, he appeared confused after the shooting, and investigators are examining several lines of inquiry, including the bullying claim. The prosecutor's office said at least four shots were fired. The investigation was opened on suspicion of attempted murder.

The incident drew sharp reactions from the top ranks of the French government. Education Minister Édouard Geffray condemned the shooting and called it an unacceptable act that illustrates, in his words, the spread of violence in society. French President Emmanuel Macron praised the composure and response of the school staff, who he said prevented an even more serious outcome. The education minister and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez announced they would visit the scene.

Authorities clarified that at this stage, no direct connection has been found between the shooting and the student protests taking place in France around issues related to the education system. The investigation continues, and at its center are the questions of how the student arrived at school armed with a firearm, what exactly happened in the minutes before the shooting, and what was the motive for an act that struck fear into students, teachers and parents.