Former Student Opens Fire at High School in Turkey, Wounding 16

On the morning of April 14, 2026, a former student walked into the Ahmet Koyuncu Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School in Siverek, a district of Şanlıurfa province in southeastern Turkey, carrying a pump-action shotgun. He opened fire first in the schoolyard, then inside the building, wounding 16 people before turning the weapon on himself [1][2]. The dead attacker left behind no manifesto, no clear motive — only injured classmates, teachers, and a community searching for answers.

Security experts immediately noted the attack's departure from Turkey's typical patterns of violence. One analyst quoted in Turkish media described it as resembling "American-style school raids, seldom seen in Turkey" [3]. The incident has forced a reckoning with questions Turkey had largely avoided: how a teenager obtained a shotgun, why social media warnings went unheeded, and whether a country with some of the strictest gun laws in the region has the enforcement infrastructure to match.

What Happened in Siverek

The attack unfolded at approximately mid-morning at the vocational school in the Hasan Çelebi neighborhood of Siverek [3]. The assailant — identified in Turkish media by his initials Ö.K., born in 2007, making him 17 or 18 years old depending on the source — had recently left the school and enrolled in an open-learning (distance education) program [3][4].

Armed with a pump-action shotgun, he first fired in the school courtyard, then entered the building [4]. Omer Furkan Sayar, a student present during the attack, told reporters: "He suddenly entered the classroom and fired... He didn't say anything, he entered and started to shoot directly" [5].

The attacker wounded 16 people in total: 10 students, 4 teachers, 1 police officer, and 1 cafeteria operator [1][2][5]. After firing, the gunman retreated further into the building. Police cornered him inside, and he died by suicide with the same weapon before officers could apprehend him [1][5].

All wounded individuals were initially transported to Siverek State Hospital. Five of the teachers and students were later transferred to a hospital in the provincial capital of Şanlıurfa because of the severity of their injuries [5][2]. Four of the wounded were reported to be in serious condition as of the afternoon of the attack [6]. No victims died from their injuries based on available reporting.

The Attacker's Profile

The details that have emerged about the shooter paint an incomplete picture. He was a former student of the school, recently transitioned to distance learning, and born in 2007 [3][4]. Reports on his age vary between 17 and 18 across different outlets [5][3].

He did not have a criminal record and was not previously known to law enforcement [5]. However, multiple media outlets reported that the assailant had posted threats against the school on social media before the shooting [1][5]. Whether anyone reported those threats to authorities — and whether any action was taken — remains an open question in the ongoing investigation.

One Turkish media outlet reported that the attacker "had previously argued with a friend" before coming to the school armed, though details of that dispute were not elaborated [4]. Şanlıurfa Governor Hasan Şıldak confirmed that "an extensive investigation into the motive behind the attack is currently underway" [3][6].

The weapon used — a pump-action shotgun — is significant. Turkish reporting noted that "pump-action shotguns are relatively easy to acquire compared to handguns" in Turkey and frequently appear in domestic violence cases [3]. How the attacker obtained the weapon has not been publicly disclosed.

Turkey's Gun Laws and Enforcement Gap

Turkey's firearm regulations are, on paper, among the more restrictive in the region. Civilians must be at least 21 years old to obtain a firearms license, undergo background checks and mental health evaluations, and demonstrate a genuine reason for ownership such as hunting, sport shooting, or self-defense [7][8]. Licenses are valid for five years and require renewal through the same process. Semi-automatic rifles, suppressors, and open carry in residential areas are prohibited [7].

The attacker, at 17 or 18, was well below the legal age for firearm ownership. The fact that he obtained a pump-action shotgun points to either the illegal market or access through a family member or acquaintance — a pattern common in jurisdictions where legal ownership is high even as regulations are strict.

The scale of Turkey's illegal firearms problem is substantial. In 2024, 137,617 individuals were investigated for carrying unlicensed firearms — a 154% increase from the 54,198 investigated in 2020 [9]. This surge occurred despite, or perhaps because of, two significant policy changes: in 2018, the civilian ammunition allowance was raised from 200 to 1,000 rounds annually, and a 2019 amendment allowed individuals previously convicted of firearm-related crimes to regain ownership rights [9].

Source: Stockholm Center for Freedom

Data as of Apr 14, 2026CSV

The We Will Stop Femicide Platform has documented that 56% of femicide victims in Turkey are killed with guns that "can easily be purchased" [9]. The gap between Turkey's formal licensing requirements and the reality of firearm access on the ground is a central issue raised by the Siverek shooting.

School Attacks in Turkey: Rare but Not Unprecedented

School shootings in Turkey are uncommon. Multiple sources described the Siverek attack as a significant departure from the country's typical violence profile [1][5]. But the historical record shows that such events, while infrequent, have occurred.

The most notable precedent is the April 5, 2018 shooting at Eskişehir Osmangazi University, where research assistant Volkan Bayar shot and killed four staff members and injured three others [10][11]. Bayar, who had filed complaints against colleagues accusing them of ties to the Gülenist movement, was convicted and sentenced to four life terms [11]. That incident, while driven by workplace grievance rather than the profile of a disaffected student, exposed similar gaps in institutional response — Bayar's colleagues had previously complained about his behavior to university administration, which took no action [11].

Source: Wikipedia / Media Reports

Data as of Apr 14, 2026CSV

Documented school attacks in Turkey over the past two decades remain in the single digits, a stark contrast to the United States, where the K-12 School Shooting Database has recorded hundreds of incidents per year in recent years [12]. Among Turkey's European and Middle Eastern peers, school shootings are similarly rare — Germany experienced major incidents in 2002 (Erfurt) and 2009 (Winnenden) that prompted significant legislative responses, but has not seen comparable events since.

School Security: What Was — and Wasn't — in Place

The Ahmet Koyuncu Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School did not have a permanent police officer assigned to it at the time of the attack [5]. A police officer was wounded in the shooting, but reporting suggests this officer was responding to or present for other reasons rather than serving as a dedicated school security resource.

Turkey does not have a nationwide program equivalent to the U.S. school resource officer model. In Turkish schools, the school administrator bears primary responsibility for safety, and guidance counselors perform some security-related functions, particularly in larger cities [13]. Research on Turkish school safety has noted that these services "need to become widespread in all schools" and "need updating" [13].

There is no publicly available data on per-student security spending in Turkish schools, and no documented post-incident policy commitments from prior attacks that can be measured against current infrastructure. The 2018 Eskişehir shooting led to the resignation of the university rector who had failed to act on warnings about the shooter, but did not produce visible national policy changes on campus security [11].

The Debate Over Security Hardening

The Siverek shooting will inevitably renew calls for enhanced physical security in Turkish schools. But a substantial body of international research raises questions about the effectiveness and side effects of that approach.

A review of 15 years of research on metal detectors in schools found they had "no effect on reducing injuries, deaths, or threats of violence on school grounds" [14]. A nationwide U.S. survey of over 6,000 students found that metal detectors and security guards "consistently failed at reducing victimization" [14]. The National Association of School Psychologists concluded in 2018 that "the use of metal detectors is negatively correlated with students' sense of safety at school, even when taking into account the level of violence at the schools" [14].

The distributional effects of security measures are also uneven. Research has found that among high-violence schools, those with majority-minority enrollments were "much more likely to conduct metal detector searches than majority white schools" [15]. Schools with higher concentrations of low-income students were more likely to have full-time security officers, drug-sniffing dogs, locked gates, and metal detectors — even after controlling for student behavior and neighborhood crime [15].

Source: OpenAlex

Data as of Jan 1, 2026CSV

Academic research on school shooting prevention has grown substantially, with 18,289 papers published on the topic since 2011, peaking at 1,785 in 2024 [16]. The consensus that has emerged from this body of work favors investment in mental health services and counseling over physical hardening. Multiple studies have found that school counselors reduce disciplinary incidents and improve academic achievement — outcomes that address root causes rather than symptoms [14].

Whether Turkey adopts a hardening approach, a mental-health-first approach, or some combination will depend on the political dynamics following this attack. The country has no established post-shooting policy playbook to draw from.

Socioeconomic Context: Southeastern Turkey

Siverek sits in Şanlıurfa province, part of Turkey's historically underdeveloped southeast. The region has long trailed western Turkey in economic indicators, educational attainment, and public service provision.

Turkey's national youth unemployment rate stood at 16.3% in 2024, ranking third among major economies tracked by the International Labour Organization — behind only South Africa (60.1%) and France (19.3%) [17]. National overall unemployment has declined from a peak of 13.7% in 2019 to 8.5% in 2025, but these figures mask significant regional variation [18]. Southeastern provinces like Şanlıurfa consistently report unemployment rates well above the national average.

Source: ILOSTAT — International Labour Organization

Data as of Dec 31, 2024CSV

Source: World Bank Open Data

Data as of Dec 31, 2025CSV

Research on Turkish youth has documented the psychological toll of economic precarity. A 2024 study published in the European Health Psychologist found that Turkish youth report higher levels of psychological stress than refugee youth in the same educational system, driven by "social pressures, academic expectations and economic uncertainties" [19]. After extended unemployment following graduation, young Turks are "often compelled to accept less-desirable positions; working in low-paying jobs that sometimes lack social security benefits" [20].

Mental health service availability in southeastern Turkey is limited. Turkey spends a lower share of its health budget on mental health than most European countries, and the distribution of mental health professionals is concentrated in western urban centers [19]. For a young person in Siverek experiencing distress, the nearest specialized care may be in Şanlıurfa city or further.

The attacker's specific circumstances — why he left the school, what his home life was like, whether he had contact with any mental health or support services — remain unknown pending the investigation. But the broader conditions in southeastern Turkey create an environment where young men facing personal crises have fewer institutional safety nets to catch them.

Government Response and Policy Outlook

Governor Şıldak characterized the shooting as an "isolated incident" and promised a "comprehensive" investigation [5][6]. The Interior Ministry launched a wide-ranging inquiry through security units and pledged to share developments publicly [4].

Turkey's track record on post-incident policy reform is thin. The 2018 Eskişehir university shooting resulted in the resignation of the university's rector but no identifiable national legislative or regulatory changes to campus security or firearms access [11]. The 2019 amendment that restored gun ownership rights to individuals with prior firearms convictions moved in the opposite direction of restriction [9].

No Turkish political figure has publicly announced specific legislative proposals in response to the Siverek shooting as of the day of the attack. Whether the incident generates sustained political pressure for reform — on gun access, school security, or youth mental health services — remains to be seen. In countries where school shootings are rare, individual incidents sometimes catalyze policy change (as in Germany after Winnenden, or the UK after Dunblane). In others, the rarity of the event is used to argue against systemic reform.

Unanswered Questions

Several critical gaps remain in the public record:

• How did a minor obtain a pump-action shotgun? The weapon's provenance — purchased illegally, taken from a household, or obtained through other means — has not been disclosed.
• What was posted on social media, and who saw it? Reports indicate the attacker made threats online before the shooting. Whether those threats were reported to any authority, and whether any platform or law enforcement entity reviewed them, is unknown.
• What prompted the attacker's departure from the school? His transition to distance learning could reflect voluntary withdrawal, expulsion, or other circumstances that may bear on motive.
• What trauma resources are being deployed? The immediate medical response has been documented, but the psychological support infrastructure for hundreds of students, staff, and families affected by the shooting has not been publicly detailed.

The Siverek shooting has exposed fault lines that Turkey has not previously been forced to confront at this scale: the accessibility of firearms despite formal restrictions, the absence of systematic school security, and the limited mental health infrastructure available to young people in the country's most economically disadvantaged regions. How the country responds will depend on whether this attack is treated as an aberration or as a warning.