What is it?

The 2026 Onikişubat School Shooting was a mass shooting that occurred on 15 April 2026 at Ayser Çalık Secondary School in the Onikişubat district of Kahramanmaraş Province, Turkey. A 14-year-old student, İsa Aras Mersinli, killed 10 people and injured 19 others before dying from a knife wound sustained while trying to flee. It is the deadliest school shooting in Turkish history.

The attack took place just one day after another school shooting in Siverek, Şanlıurfa Province, where a 19-year-old injured 16 people before killing himself. The back-to-back incidents shocked the nation and sparked widespread debate about school safety, gun control, and mental health support for young people in Turkey.

The shooter used five 9mm pistols and seven magazines, all belonging to his father, a police officer. The weapons were concealed in a backpack. The attack began in a classroom and continued in a second room, with students jumping from windows to escape. A parent, Necmettin Bekçi, intervened and slashed the shooter's leg, severing the femoral artery, which led to the shooter's death from hypovolemic shock.

In the aftermath, schools in Kahramanmaraş were closed for two days. The government imposed a broadcast ban on coverage of the shooting to protect the investigation. Seven prosecutors and multiple inspectors were assigned to the case. The incident also triggered protests and calls for action from teachers' unions and human rights groups.

The shooting has been linked to incel ideology, as the shooter's WhatsApp profile picture featured Elliot Rodger, a notorious American mass murderer. Investigations revealed that the shooter had a history of psychological issues and had been recommended for psychiatric support, but his parents did not follow through. The case remains under investigation.

Key Facts

Date: 15 April 2026
Location: Ayser Çalık Secondary School, Onikişubat, Kahramanmaraş, Turkey
Perpetrator: İsa Aras Mersinli, 14-year-old 8th-grade student
Weapons: Five 9mm pistols and seven magazines, owned by his father (a police officer)
Fatalities: 10 (1 teacher, 9 students, including one who died 18 days later)
Injuries: 19 (12 at the school, 7 while escaping)
Shooter's death: Died from hypovolemic shock after a parent severed his femoral artery
Deadliest school shooting in Turkish history
Occurred one day after the Siverek school shooting
Shooter's WhatsApp profile picture was Elliot Rodger, suggesting incel motivation
Shooter had a history of psychological issues and self-harm
Parents detained for questioning; father later arrested for negligence
Broadcast ban imposed by the Ministry of Justice
Schools in Kahramanmaraş closed for two days

Full Explanation

The Attack

At approximately 1:30 p.m. TRT on 15 April 2026, İsa Aras Mersinli entered Ayser Çalık Secondary School carrying a backpack containing five 9mm pistols and seven magazines. The weapons belonged to his father, Uğur Mersinli, a 1st Degree Police Chief. The shooter first entered a classroom and opened fire, then moved to a second classroom. At least one of the classrooms was a mathematics class. Students and teachers scrambled to escape, with some jumping from windows to safety.

Necmettin Bekçi, a parent of two students at the school, entered the building after hearing the gunfire. He found two staff members trying to restrain the shooter in a stairwell. When the shooter broke free, Bekçi slashed his leg with a knife, inadvertently severing the femoral artery. The shooter died from hypovolemic shock before reaching a hospital.

Victims and Heroism

The victims included Ayla Kara, a 56-year-old mathematics teacher who was hailed as a hero for shielding her students with her body. She was killed at the scene. Another victim, 11-year-old Yusuf Tarık Gül, died after 18 days in the hospital. His father, a former police officer who had been imprisoned for six years after the 2016 coup attempt purges, criticized the government for not attending his son's funeral. This sparked outrage from human rights groups and opposition MPs.

In total, 10 people were killed and 19 injured. Eleven people were discharged from the hospital after treatment. The injured included five critically wounded students.

Perpetrator Background

İsa Aras Mersinli was a 14-year-old 8th-grade student at the school. According to classmates, he had no friends, often slept in class, and behaved strangely. He had a history of self-harm, including cutting himself with pens and razors. He also experienced sudden crying fits that required intervention from the school counseling service. Days before the attack, he told classmates he planned to carry out a school shooting, but they dismissed it as a joke.

Investigations revealed that two different psychologists had recommended psychiatric support for the shooter, but his parents did not follow through. The shooter's father claimed the guns were locked in a chest, but video evidence showed the shooter loading a magazine and posing with a gun, disproving that claim. The father had taken the shooter to a police shooting range two days before the attack to teach him how to use firearms.

History

School shootings are extremely rare in Turkey. The country has strict gun laws requiring licensing, registration, background checks, and severe penalties for illegal possession. However, critics argue that the number of individual gun owners has increased dangerously in recent years. Prior to the Onikişubat shooting, the most notable school shooting was the 2018 Eskişehir University shooting, which injured one person.

The day before the Onikişubat attack, a 19-year-old opened fire at a vocational high school in Siverek, Şanlıurfa Province, injuring 16 people before committing suicide. This incident prompted teachers' unions to announce a nationwide one-day work stoppage on 15 April to protest the lack of security for educators and students. Minister of National Education Yusuf Tekin had addressed the press just minutes before the Onikişubat shooting, stating that schools had been classified by risk category and that safety was a priority.

On the same day as the Onikişubat shooting, a teenager fired shots at a student outside a high school in Şahinbey, Gaziantep Province, but no one was injured. A high school student in Tarsus, Mersin Province, was also caught with a handgun at school. Additionally, a 13-year-old boy was severely injured in a stabbing at a park in Keçiören, Ankara Province. On 17 April, a parent attempted to attack a teacher with a knife at a school in Şanlıurfa, but police subdued the attacker.

The Onikişubat shooting is the deadliest in Turkish history, surpassing the 2018 Eskişehir incident. It has drawn comparisons to mass shootings in other countries, particularly the United States, and has reignited debates about gun control, mental health, and school security in Turkey.

Why it matters

The Onikişubat school shooting is a watershed moment for Turkey, highlighting the vulnerability of schools to gun violence despite strict gun laws. It has forced a national conversation about the effectiveness of existing regulations and the need for better mental health support for young people. The shooter's history of psychological issues and the failure of his parents to act on professional recommendations underscore gaps in the mental health system.

The incident also raises questions about the role of incel ideology in inspiring violence. The shooter's admiration for Elliot Rodger suggests that online radicalization is a growing concern in Turkey, as it is in many other countries. The government's response, including a broadcast ban and the detention of the shooter's parents, has been criticized by human rights groups as insufficient and potentially counterproductive.

Finally, the shooting has had a profound emotional impact on the nation, particularly the story of Yusuf Tarık Gül, whose father's political background led to a perceived snub by government officials at his funeral. This has deepened political divisions and fueled criticism of the ruling AK Party. The Onikişubat shooting will likely be remembered as a tragic turning point in Turkey's approach to school safety and youth mental health.