Teen gunman kills at least 7 in Thailand's worst school shooting in years

What Happened

On August 7, 2026, a student carried out a school shooting at the Debsirin School in Bang Kruai district, Nonthaburi province, Thailand, killing seven people and injuring around fifteen others before committing suicide. Police have identified the suspect as a 14-year-old student. At least seven people have been killed, including three students and three teachers, in a school shooting that took place at a high school in the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand.

The alleged gunman also killed his grandparents, who he lived with, before coming to the school to carry out the shooting. Using what police said was his grandfather's handgun, the suspect opened fire at Debsirin Nonthaburi School, a well-known secondary school of about 3,000 students, located on a busy highway in the Bang Kruai district of Nonthaburi province, north of Bangkok. Most of the casualties are teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17.

Official Response

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul called the shooting "premeditated" and said the alleged shooter "carried lots of pressure and tension." He could have harmed more people if he had not killed himself, the prime minister said, noting that he had more than 30 rounds of bullets when he died.

Context and Severity

The shootings were the nation's worst mass killing since the 2022 Nong Bua Lamphu massacre that killed 38 people. Thailand ranks as the Southeast Asian country with the second-highest number of gun homicides after the Philippines, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington's 2019 Global Burden of Disease database. It is the second school shooting in Thailand this year. One teacher was killed and a student was injured in February at a school in the southern district of Hat Yai.

Immediate Aftermath

More than 20 other people were wounded, with nine in a critical condition. Video from inside the school shows students seeking shelter beneath tables in a classroom, tables overturned and stacked, and bullet shells on the floor.