Boy, 14, 'shoots headmaster and teacher in school shotgun rampage' in France

Published: 05:23 EDT, 12 October 2026 | Updated: 06:01 EDT, 12 October 2026 A 14-year-old boy allegedly shot his headmaster and a teacher in a gun rampage in southern France on Monday.The principal of the Joseph-Lakanal middle school in Aubagne, near Marseille, was hit in the lower body, according to BFMTV.A 37-year-old teacher was also shot in the thigh while a third person was grazed in the shooting. A 14-year-old boy has been arrested, suspected of being the shooter. Conflicting reports said the weapon was a 12-gauge shotgun or a hunting rifle. According to a police source, the principal, 53, was in front of the school when he was targeted by gunshots, French newspaper Le Figaro reported.'He fired four or five times,' the source said.The suspected perpetrator fired several shots inside the school, before staff subdued the teenager and law enforcement intervened, France 3 television reported. The principal of the Joseph-Lakanal middle school in Aubagne, Bouches-du-Rhône, was hit in the lower body, according to BFMTV (Google Street View) French gendarmes stand in front of Joseph-Lakanal high school after a headmaster was injured and a teenager was arrested in Aubagne, southern France, on October 12 The prime minister's office said the principal's life was not in danger and that the interior and education ministers were heading to the sceneFirefighters have been dispatched to the scene.The Minister of the Interior Laurent Nuñez, the Minister of National Education Édouard Geffray as well as the Minister Delegate for Vocational Education and Training and Apprenticeship Sabrina Roubache are expected to visit the site on Monday afternoon.The principal and the teacher have been treated and their lives are not in danger, according to the prime minister's office.Geffray said a pupil at the school was suspected of being behind the attack.An investigation has been opened for attempted murder as the Marseille public prosecutor travels to the scene, according to BFMTV.The prefect of Bouches-du-Rhône, the mayor of Aubagne, and the regional education authority are outside the school, where many parents have gathered after the incident.'No students were injured,' Mayor Jean-Pierre Squillari confirmed to reporters. France has faced a wave of protests over the state of the country's schools, with some of the demonstrations hit by violence. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that he condemned those incidents of violence. A source close to the investigation told BFMTV that the shootings had 'no connection' with the student protests. Furthermore, the Joseph-Lakanal middle school was apparently not affected by any blockades. The Bouches-du-Rhône police department, in southern France, said the suspect's motive was unknown.This is a breaking news story. More to follow.