Three children aged 12 have been wounded in a shooting at a school in the Finnish city Vantaa, police said.
Police reported that they responded to the incident at Viertola school before 09:00 (06:00 GMT) on Tuesday and advised local residents to remain indoors.
A suspect, also 12 years old, fled the scene but was apprehended later.
Viertola school, which accommodates 800 students and 90 staff, instructed children to remain in their classrooms following the attack, according to public broadcaster YLE.
Similar to other Finnish schools, classes had just resumed in Vantaa, north of the capital Helsinki, following the extended Easter weekend.
Police stated that the suspect fled after the shooting and was eventually arrested “in a calm manner” on the other side of a local river in a district of northern Helsinki. They further noted that he was found in possession of a firearm, which was confiscated.
Details regarding the extent of the injuries sustained by the three children have not yet been disclosed.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo expressed deep concern about the shooting and conveyed his sympathy to the victims, their families, and the school community.
The school caters to students aged seven to 15, spanning both primary and middle-school levels across two separate sites.
As news of the shooting spread, parents gathered at the Jokiranta site, where pupils aged 9-12 receive instruction.
Initially, police stated that all individuals involved were 13 years old, but later revised their ages downward to 12.
Vantaa, with approximately 240,000 residents, ranks as Finland’s fourth largest city.
Finland experienced two fatal school shootings within a short span in 2007 and 2008, prompting the tightening of gun regulations. However, the country is widely recognized for its culture of hunting and firearm enthusiasts, boasting 430,000 licensed gun owners among its 5.5 million population, according to government data. There are no restrictions on the number of firearms that can be owned, and the interior ministry reports that over 1.5 million guns are in circulation.
In 2007, an 18-year-old student fatally shot seven classmates and his head teacher in Tuusula, while the following year, another student shot and killed nine classmates and a teacher in Kauhajoki.