BBCUnited States
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Thailand suspends new gun permits after mass shooting
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Thailand's government will immediately stop issuing gun permits after a shooting incident last week in which a 14-year-old killed eight people and himself.
Existing gun owners are already banned from carrying their weapons in public.
The South East Asian country has one of the highest rates of civilian gun ownership in the region, with around 10.3 million firearms in civilian possession, and high levels of gun crime.
In response to the recent shooting, the prime minister has promised to pass tough new gun control laws with severe penalties, suspending new permits in the meantime.
Last Friday, a pupil at Debsirin Nonthaburi School outside Bangkok shot his grandparents using a handgun owned by his grandfather, before opening fire at teachers and students at school, authorities say.
Both grandparents, five staff members at the school and one 12-year-old girl died.
Police believe the shooter may have taught himself to use a gun via social media.
They say there is evidence that the boy watched violent content online, and that he showed a strong interest in learning how to handle guns.
His consumption of this content as well as anxiety over studies and family issues might have also fuelled his actions, they add.
Until further notice, no new permits to purchase or own guns will be issued. Existing purchase permits will not be renewed but it is unclear what will happen to existing gun ownership permits.
Permits to carry guns were suspended in late 2023 - owners must keep their weapons at home or at a shooting range.
The government is also considering measures to persuade the owners of an estimated four million unlicensed guns to hand them over in the wake of the school shooting.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has said the announced measures will remain in place as the government works to pass new gun control laws, with stronger controls and significantly harsher penalties.
Gun control advocates have called for mental health assessments as part of the permit process, and for permits to be periodically re-evaluated.
Anutin has said stricter ammunition controls are in his sights, while the education minister has proposed screening at the entrance of schools to stop students from bringing in weapons.
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Thai PM vows to introduce stricter gun laws after eight killed in shooting
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Thailand's prime minister has vowed to introduce new gun control laws following a shooting by a teenager on the outskirts of Bangkok that left eight people dead and 22 injured.
Fourteen people remain in hospital, seven of whom are in a critical condition.
The 14-year-old killed his grandparents at the home they shared before travelling to Debsirin School in Nonthaburi, where he had been a student. There, he killed five teachers before taking his own life. Later, Thai media reported that a student had also died from their injuries.
Speaking after the attack, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he planned to introduce laws that restrict the carrying of firearms in public.
I was standing in front of my teacher when she was shot, Thai pupil says
- Published2 days ago
The new legislation will only allow government officials on duty to carry guns.
Police Col Thadsakorn Konthong said that the gun and bullets used in the attack belonged to the teen's grandfather, with an initial inspection finding signs that the firearm had been searched for inside the grandfather's bedroom.
International and local media have reported that the gun was legally registered and had a permit.
Thailand has one of the highest rates of civilian gun ownership in South East Asia, with around 10.3 million firearms in civilian possession, around four million of which are believed to be owned illegally.
The country has strict gun laws, which punish the illegal possession of arms with up to 10 years in jail, but enforcement of these laws has been an issue.
During his time as interior minister, Anutin introduced a number of gun control laws, including a short-term ban on new gun licenses and import restrictions.
Speaking on Friday, the prime minister said the tragedy "shouldn't have happened".
"I don't just feel sorry for the victims but I feel sorry that this happened. How can this happen in our country," Anutin added.
The teenager is believed to have shot his 73-year-old grandfather and 74-year-old grandmother at their two-storey flat at around 05:00 local time on Friday (22:00 GMT on Thursday).
Each was killed by a single shot to the head, a Thai police official said.
After killing his grandparents, the teenager boarded a school bus carrying the firearm and dozens of bullets, Reuters news agency reported.
He then attended his first class at 08:30 and his second at 09:20.
Around half an hour into his second class of the day, he drew the gun and began shooting.
The teenager is believed to have first shot teachers on the school's sixth floor, killing three of them.
"He then walked down the stairs and encountered the school's deputy director and the director's secretary, who were going up the stairs to check on the situation," Police Major General Dejrapee Kongdee told Reuters.
"The attacker shot and killed both of them on the staircase."
Police were deployed to the scene while the shooting was ongoing. They found the attacker, who by then had shot himself, around 10:40, Dejrapee said.
Five people were immediately killed and at least 23 were wounded. Later, Thailand's public broadcaster and the Bangkok Post reported that an eighth victim had died.
National police chief Gen Kittiratt Phanphet told reporters that forensic officers had found the attacker's shots were quite accurate, with several hitting vital spots on the body.
The prime minister said the attack was "well prepared" with "clear steps and clear goals".
According to local media, police have searched devices belonging to the teenager and found several videos relating to school shootings in the US.
The teenager has been described as quiet and well behaved by family members in local media.
His uncle told Thai media the teen spent much of his time indoors playing violent video games and rarely went outside. He added there was no indication the teenager was planning the attack.
The attacker had lived with his grandparents, as his parents were divorced.
The Debsirin School, founded in Bangkok in 1885, is one of Thailand's top secondary schools with branches across the country. It counts many prominent Thai figures among its alumni, from diplomats and athletes to several prime ministers.
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Police released Friday new surveillance video of the mass shooting at an In-N-Out in Twin Falls, Idaho, showing the clearest account yet of the horrific scene that unfolded last weekend.
In a news conference, the Twin Falls Police Department showed a video of the shooting edited together with clips from multiple surveillance cameras and using detailed voice-over from law enforcement.
The Saturday shooting at and around the newly opened fast-food restaurant left three people dead and seven others wounded. The 24-year-old gunman, Chad Williams, fatally shot himself.
The video begins by showing Williams pulling up to the In-N-Out drive-thru in a white Honda Civic. When he stops at the payment window, he rolls down his window and shoots employee Ashley Garibay, with a handgun. Garibay, 23, later died of her injuries.
Williams then pulls up slightly, parks and exits his car. He walks a few steps and fatally shoots Christopher Claunch as he’s sitting in his vehicle, according to the video.
The video then shows a man, whom authorities have identified as former police officer Austin James, running toward Williams before getting shot. James survived the shooting, but is shown retreating back to his car while losing blood.
Williams then returns to the payment window and observes other employees rendering aid to Garibay before firing into the window, the video shows. His handgun jams, prompting him to return to his vehicle and retrieve a rifle, according to the video.
Inside the restaurant, an off-duty Idaho state police trooper assists evacuating patrons and employees while searching for the gunman, according to the video. Authorities said they were not releasing the off-duty trooper’s name at this time.
The surveillance video shows about half a dozen uniformed In-N-Out employees crawling on the ground, and over each other, to escape.
Williams is then seen firing at fleeing patrons in the parking lot before he quickly returns to the drive-thru window, where he exchanges gunfire with the off-duty trooper who’s still in the restaurant. The gunman briefly retreats, then returns to the window and fires inside the restaurant again, injuring a good Samaritan who was trying to help the trooper and render aid to Garibay.
A woman seen in the video fleeing from the restaurant encounters the gunman and quickly seeks shelter behind his car, where she finds the discarded handgun. She picks it up and then discards it when she realizes it’s jammed, according to the footage.
The gunman then walks from the In-N-Out toward the street and fires at cars stopped at a red light, striking three victims, the video shows. A good Samaritan with a handgun then engages with Williams as he flees to a nearby Tesla charging station.
The gunman then can be seen firing at Tesla vehicles parked at the charging station, shooting three people as they sat in their vehicles. One of the three who were shot, Dale Schultz, 66, died from his injuries, the video states.
Williams then walks into the nearby Twin Falls Visitor’s Center where three people were hiding, according to the footage. He then leaves the visitor center store and encounters two employees of nearby businesses on a walking trail behind the visitor center.
One of the employees engages with the gunman, talking with him and allowing others coming down the trail time to escape, according to the video. As they separate, Williams fires at the employee, the video shows. That employee survived and was hailed for his bravery by law enforcement at Friday’s news conference.
Body camera video from police officers responding to the scene and running toward the gunman is then shown.
“Hey! Show me your hands!” an officer shouts as he points his rifle toward the gunman, who had walked off the trail and was standing above a canyon.
The voice-over then states that Williams fatally shot himself and fell into the canyon.
On Friday, police said that they still have not identified a motive; they also said there is no reason to believe there was another shooter.
“To our victims and their loved ones, this community grieves with you,” said Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks. “We will never forget what happened here. We will never forget those that were hurt.”
The In-N-Out location opened on July 24, according to a news release from the California-based chain.
Lynsi Snyder, the president of In-N-Out Burger, addressed the shooting and the death of Garibay.
“She was taking care of our most important asset — our customers, and her life was taken by a disgusting human who doesn’t value the lives of others or his own,” Snyder said.
“He shot both on our property and off and ended his life shortly after he took the precious lives of our associate and customers, innocent people who never saw it coming,” she added.
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