Shock in Prague after university mass shooting
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Transcript
00:00 In the heart of Prague, ambulance and police sirens wail throughout the night as bridges
00:05 and squares remain sealed off by authorities. On Thursday afternoon, a 24-year-old gunman
00:11 opened fire at the Charles University's Faculty of Arts near one of Prague's main tourist
00:17 squares. Police found the shooter's body on site. Students of the university remain in
00:22 total shock as they pay tribute to their classmates in a makeshift memorial just hours after the
00:28 tragedy. "I think everyone was just in a state of shock. Again, these things don't happen
00:35 here. We weren't really sure what to do. Do we stay in class? Do we leave?" "I was really
00:44 shocked. I tried to check that everybody who I know is from the faculty is okay." The suspect,
00:56 who was a student at the same university, came from the nearby village of Hostun. Police
01:01 had been searching for him for several hours before discovering his father's body and hearing
01:06 that the gunman had plans to kill himself. The Czech president assured the public that
01:11 initial findings showed no evidence of this act being linked to international terrorism.
01:16 "I'm calling on everybody not to abuse this tragedy. Use it politically, use it to attack
01:27 the police, nor use it to spread misinformation. In a situation like this, we need first and
01:35 foremost faith, restraint and togetherness."
01:41 Happening just a few days before Christmas, this is the nation's worst mass shooting since
01:45 the country's independence in 1993. The government declared a national day of mourning on Saturday
01:51 23rd of December to remember the victims.
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