A former student opens fire at an Austrian school, killing 10 and taking his own life

GRAZ, Austria (AP) — A former student opened fire at a school in Austria’s second-biggest city Tuesday, killing 10 people and wounding 12 others before taking his own life, authorities said.

There was no immediate information on the motive of the 21-year-old man, who had no previous police record. He used two weapons, which he was believed to have owned legally, police said.

“Today is a dark day in the history of our country,” Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker told reporters in Graz, a city of about 300,000 people in southeastern Austria.

He called it “a national tragedy that shocks us deeply” and said there would be three days of national mourning, with the Austrian flag lowered to half-staff at official buildings. A national minute of silence was to be held Wednesday morning in memory of the victims.

Special forces were among those sent to the BORG Dreierschützengasse high school, about a kilometer (over half a mile) from Graz’s historic center, after calls at 10 a.m. reporting shots at the building. More than 300 police officers were sent to the school, which was evacuated. Footage from the scene showed students filing out quickly past armed officers.

Police said security was restored in 17 minutes.

The assailant, who acted alone, was a 21-year-old Austrian man who lived near Graz, police said. His name wasn't released.

Regional police chief Gerald Ortner said two firearms — a long gun and a handgun — were used in the shooting and recovered from the scene, and that the assailant was apparently legally in possession of them. The man took his own life in a bathroom.

Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said the gunman had been a student at the school and hadn't completed his studies. He didn't specify when the man left the school or at what age.

Karner said Tuesday afternoon that six of the dead were female and three male, but didn't give further information. He said 12 people were wounded. The state hospital in Graz later said that a 10th victim, an adult woman, had died of her injuries, the Austria Press Agency reported.

Austria’s Red Cross said it had deployed 65 ambulances to the scene and 158 emergency staffers were helping treat the injured. In addition, 40 specially trained psychologists were counseling students and parents. The Red Cross also called on locals to come forward and donate blood.

Metin Özden was in his kebab restaurant near the school when he first heard police cars sped by, and then a police helicopter above. He told the Krone newspaper: “I knew something bad had happened. … I’ve never seen so many emergency services in my entire life.” He also described to the paper seeing parents walking past his restaurant and crying on the way to the school.

Tuesday’s violence appeared to be the deadliest attack in Austria’s post-World War II history.

In 2020, four people were killed in Vienna and the suspect, a sympathizer of the Islamic State group, also died in a shooting. More than 20 other people, including a police officer, were wounded.

In June 2015, a man killed three people and injured more than 30 when he drove through a crowd in downtown Graz with an SUV.

Austria, which has a strong tradition of hunting, has some of the more liberal gun laws in the European Union.

Some weapons, such as rifles and shotguns that must be reloaded manually after each shot, can be purchased in Austria from the age of 18 without a permit. Gun dealers only need to check if there’s no weapons ban on the buyer and the weapon gets registered in the central weapons register.

Other weapons, such as repeating shotguns or semi-automatic firearms, are more difficult to acquire — buyers need a gun ownership card and a firearms pass.

Moulson reported from Berlin. AP journalists Kirsten Grieshaber and Stefanie Dazio in Berlin and Vanessa Gera in Warsaw, Poland, contributed to this report.

A woman holds a candle for victims of a former student who opened fire at a school, fatally wounding 10 people and injuring many others before taking his own life, in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

A police car stand in front of a school building after shooting at the school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

In this image made from video provided by Servus TV, police at the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Servus TV via AP)

Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, left, and Chancellor Christian Stocker, right, attend a news conference following a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

Police officers attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Kleine Zeitung via AP)

Rescue service personnel attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Kleine Zeitung via AP)

Rescue service personnel attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Kleine Zeitung via AP)

Rescue service personnel attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Kleine Zeitung via AP)

Police officers attend the scene of a shooting at a school in Graz, Austria, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Kleine Zeitung via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of nurses in three hospital systems in New York City went on strike Monday after negotiations through the weekend failed to yield breakthroughs in their contract disputes.

The strike was taking place at The Mount Sinai Hospital and two of its satellite campuses, with picket lines forming. The other affected hospitals are NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.

About 15,000 nurses are involved in the strike, according to New York State Nurses Association.

“After months of bargaining, management refused to make meaningful progress on core issues that nurses have been fighting for: safe staffing for patients, healthcare benefits for nurses, and workplace violence protections,” the union said in a statement issued Monday. “Management at the richest hospitals in New York City are threatening to discontinue or radically cut nurses’ health benefits.”

The strike, which comes during a severe flu season, could potentially force the hospitals to transfer patients, cancel procedures or divert ambulances. It could also put a strain on city hospitals not involved in the contract dispute, as patients avoid the medical centers hit by the strike.

The hospitals involved have been hiring temporary nurses to try and fill the labor gap during the walkout, and said in a statement during negotiations that they would “do whatever is necessary to minimize disruptions.” Montefiore posted a message assuring patients that appointments would be kept.

“NYSNA’s leaders continue to double down on their $3.6 billion in reckless demands, including nearly 40% wage increases, and their troubling proposals like demanding that a nurse not be terminated if found to be compromised by drugs or alcohol while on the job," Montefiore spokesperson Joe Solmonese said Monday after the strike had started. "We remain resolute in our commitment to providing safe and seamless care, regardless of how long the strike may last.”

New York-Presbyterian accused the union of staging a strike to “create disruption,” but said in a statement that it has taken steps to ensure patients receive the care they need.

"We’re ready to keep negotiating a fair and reasonable contract that reflects our respect for our nurses and the critical role they play, and also recognizes the challenging realities of today’s healthcare environment,” the statement said.

The work stoppage is occurring at multiple hospitals simultaneously, but each medical center is negotiating with the union independently. Several other hospitals across the city and in its suburbs reached deals in recent days to avert a possible strike.

The nurses’ demands vary by hospital, but the major issues include staffing levels and workplace safety. The union says hospitals have given nurses unmanageable workloads.

Nurses also want better security measures in the workplace, citing incidents like a an incident last week, when a man with a sharp object barricaded himself in a Brooklyn hospital room and was then killed by police.

The union also wants limitations on hospitals’ use of artificial intelligence.

The nonprofit hospitals involved in the negotiations say they’ve been working to improve staffing levels, but say the union’s demands overall are too costly.

Nurses voted to authorize the strike last month.

Both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani had expressed concern about the possibility of the strike. As the strike deadline neared, Mamdani urged both sides to keep negotiating and reach a deal that “both honors our nurses and keeps our hospitals open.”

“Our nurses kept this city alive through its hardest moments. Their value is not negotiable,” Mamdani said.

State Attorney General Letitia James voiced similar support, saying "nurses put their lives on the line every day to keep New Yorkers healthy. They should never be forced to choose between their own safety, their patients’ well-being, and a fair contract.”

The last major nursing strike in the city was only three years ago, in 2023. That work stoppage, at Mount Sinai and Montefiore, was short, lasting three days. It resulted in a deal raising pay 19% over three years at those hospitals.

It also led to promised staffing improvements, though the union and hospitals now disagree about how much progress has been made, or whether the hospitals are retreating from staffing guarantees.

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

FILE - A medical worker transports a patient at Mount Sinai Hospital, April 1, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)