Turkish police order 83 arrests over online praise for school shootings

Turkish police have ordered the arrests of 83 people accused of posting controversial content online about two deadly school shootings which took place this week.

They were "found to have engaged in posts and activities praising crime and criminals and negatively affecting public order", police said.

It added that access to 940 social media accounts have been blocked and 93 Telegram groups have been shut down.

At least eight students and one teacher were killed in the school shooting in the Kahramanmaras area of southern Turkey. Turkish officials said 13 others were wounded, with six in critical condition.

A 14-year-old attacker was also killed during the incident at Ayser Calik Secondary School.

The local prosecutor's office in the Kahramanmaras province said in a statement that the suspect had planned for the attack in advance.

It said: "During the examination of digital materials, a document dated April 11, 2026, was found on the suspect's computer indicating that he intended to carry out a major operation in the near future."

The suspect had referenced US mass killer Elliot Rodger in a photo on his WhatsApp profile, according to police. Rodger, a 22-year-old American, murdered six people before taking his own life in California in 2014.

Turkish media reported that the attacker, believed to be a student, entered two classrooms and had five guns and seven magazines with him.

The aunt of a victim told the BBC she had learned that her 10-year-old niece had been killed when her name was read out on the news.

Funeral prayers for four of the victims are being held on Thursday in the city's main mosque. Three Turkish government ministers are expected to attend, the BBC understands.

The shooting was the second to take place in the country this week. On Tuesday, 16 people were injured after an ex-student opened fire at the Ahmet Koyuncu Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School in Siverek district.

The attacker, who was in his late teens, fired "indiscriminately with a shotgun" before killing himself with the weapon, local governor Hasan Şildak said.