UPDATE 4 - At least 15 dead in Prague university shooting: Police

UPDATES WITH 1 FOREIGN NATIONAL AMONG VICTIMS, REACTION FROM FRENCH PRESIDENT, REVISES DECK

By Ebad Ahmed and Burak Bir

PRAGUE/LONDON (AA) - At least 15 people were killed and 24 others injured in a shooting incident at a university in Czech Republic’s capital Prague on Thursday.

Police President Martin Vondrasek said that the gunman was a 24-year-old student at the Faculty of Arts at Charles University. The shooter was living in a village, 21 kilometers (13 miles) outside Prague, and his father was found dead earlier today, Vondrasek said.

Citing initial findings, the police chief said that the suspect was inspired by similar incidents that have taken place abroad, and he was not connected to any terrorist organization. The gunman's "lifeless body" was found at the university's Faculty of Arts, Vondrasek said, adding that he committed suicide after an exchange of fire with police.

"We haven't even begun to identify those who were shot, because first the area must be safe," he said.

According to police, there is no indication that the shooter had accomplices, adding that a foreign national is among the victims.

In his reaction to the incident, French President Emmanuel Macron said on X: “There was great emotion when we learned that Charles University in Prague had been the target of a deadly shooting. I express my solidarity with the victims, the injured and their relatives, as well as with the Czech people and authorities.”

Following the deadly incident, the nation's President Petr Pavel decided to cut short his France trip, according to Radio Prague International. Pavel will meet with state security forces, while Prime Minister Petr Fiala also canceled his work program in Olomouc and is heading to Prague.

The Czech government will reportedly hold an emergency meeting tonight. Authorities urged citizens to stay away from the scene and remain indoors.

In videos circulated on social media, gunshots can be heard and a large police presence can be seen.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her "deepest condolences" following the incident.

"I express my deepest condolences to the families of the victims and to the Czech people as a whole. We stand and mourn with you," she said on X.