‘Endless grief’: Turkiye mourns victims of second school shooting in a week

Death toll rises to 10 after shooting by 14-year-old student at the Ayser Calik School in Kahramanmaras.Mourners have gathered in Turkiye’s southern province of Kahramanmaras for the funerals of victims killed in the second of two school shootings that rocked the nation this week.Funerals were held on Thursday for eight students and maths teacher Ayla Kara, 55, who were killed in Wednesday’s shooting, The Associated Press news agency reported.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3At least nine people killed in Turkiye’s second school shooting in two dayslist 2 of 3Global energy crisis is ‘the mother of all crises’: Turkish energy ministerlist 3 of 3Shooting near Israeli consulate in Turkiye declared ‘terror’ attackend of listA 10th victim died while being treated in hospital on Thursday, authorities said. Six of those wounded in the attack were in critical condition, officials said.Isa Aras Mersinli, 14, opened fire on two classrooms in the Ayser Calik School in Kahramanmaras city on Wednesday. The attacker was later found dead.Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said the attacker is believed to have used guns that belonged to his father, a former police officer.People carry the coffin of a victim of a school shooting during the funeral prayers at a mosque in Kahramanmaras, Turkiye, on April 16, 2026 [Ensar Ozdemir/Reuters]At a funeral for four of the victims held near Kahramanmaras city’s main mosque on Thursday, one father sat motionless beside the coffin of his daughter, 10‑year‑old Zeynep, the AFP news agency reported.“Our grief is endless. These children were like our own. They were all innocent,” said Vezir Yucel, father of a student named Yusuf, who lost his close friend, 10-year-old Bayram, in the shooting.Nilgun Ruci, a 55‑year‑old homemaker, told AFP that she rushed to Ayser Calik School after hearing gunshots. When she arrived, she saw the daughter of a neighbour lying gravely wounded.