Austrian president questions gun laws after school shooting tragedy
"Does the legal situation really meet modern requirements? That will have to be examined," Van der Bellen said on Wednesday during a visit to the city, according to the APA news agency.
On Tuesday, a 21-year-old man opened fire in his former high school, killing 10 people and taking his own life. The attacker was armed with a shotgun and a handgun, both of which he legally owned, police said.
Van der Bellen, who once led the Green Party, said politicians must now address "how it can be that a 21-year-old has a handgun and a long gun and has the opportunity to buy the appropriate ammunition and cause this disaster."
Calls for tighter gun laws have intensified in the wake of the attack.
The communist mayor of Graz, Elke Kahr, has urged a ban on private firearm ownership.
Under current Austrian law, purchasing handguns requires official authorization, but rifles and shotguns can be bought without a permit.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
6 days ago
Germany deports 81 Afghan nationals to their homeland in 2nd flight since the Taliban's return
BERLIN -- Germany deported dozens of Afghan men to their homeland on Friday, the second time it has done so since the Taliban returned to power and the first since a new government pledging a tougher line on migration took office in Berlin. German authorities said a flight took off Friday morning carrying 81 Afghans, all of them men who had previously come to judicial authorities' attention and had had asylum applications rejected. Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the deportation was carried out with the help of Qatar and preceded by weeks of negotiations. He also said there were contacts with Afghanistan, but didn't elaborate. More than 10 months ago, Germany's previous government deported Afghan nationals to their homeland for the first time since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to step up deportations of asylum-seekers. Merz noted that, while diplomatic relations between Germany and Afghanistan have not formally been broken off, Berlin doesn't recognize the Taliban government in Kabul. 'The decisive question is how one deals with this regime, and it will remain at technical coordination until further notice,' he said at a news conference in Berlin. The Interior Ministry said the government aims to carry out more deportations to Afghanistan, but didn't specify when that might happen. Merz made tougher migration policy a central plank of his campaign for Germany's election in February. Just after he took office in early May, the government stationed more police at the border — stepping up border checks introduced by the Scholz government — and said some asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe's biggest economy would be turned away. It also has suspended family reunions for many migrants. Asylum applications declined from 329,120 in 2023 to 229,751 last year and have continued to fall this year. 'You can see from the figures that we are obviously on the right path, but we are not yet at the end of that path,' Merz said. The Afghan deportation flight took off hours before German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt plans to discuss migration with his counterparts from five neighboring countries — France, Poland, Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic — as well as the European Union's commissioner responsible for migration, Magnus Brunner. Dobrindt is hosting the meeting on the Zugspitze, Germany's highest peak, on the Austrian border.
Hamilton Spectator
6 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Germany deports 81 Afghan nationals to their homeland, the 2nd flight since the Taliban's return
BERLIN (AP) — Germany deported dozens of Afghan nationals to their homeland on Friday, the second time it has done so since the Taliban returned to power and the first since a new government pledging a tougher line on migration took office in Berlin. The Interior Ministry said a flight took off Friday morning carrying 81 Afghans, all of them men who had previously come to judicial authorities' attention. It said in a statement that the deportation was carried out with the help of Qatar, and said the government aims to deport more people to Afghanistan in the future. More than 10 months ago, Germany's previous government deported Afghan nationals to their homeland for the first time since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to step up deportations of asylum-seekers. New Chancellor Friedrich Merz made tougher migration policy a central plank of his campaign for Germany's election in February . Just after he took office in early May, the government stationed more police at the border and said some asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe's biggest economy would be turned away. It also has suspended family reunions for many migrants. The flight took off hours before German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt plans to meet his counterparts from five neighboring countries — France, Poland, Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic — as well as the European Union's commissioner responsible for migration, Magnus Brunner. Dobrindt is hosting the meeting to discuss migration on the Zugspitze, Germany's highest peak, on the Austrian border. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
San Francisco Chronicle
6 days ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Germany deports 81 Afghan nationals to their homeland, the 2nd flight since the Taliban's return
BERLIN (AP) — Germany deported dozens of Afghan nationals to their homeland on Friday, the second time it has done so since the Taliban returned to power and the first since a new government pledging a tougher line on migration took office in Berlin. The Interior Ministry said a flight took off Friday morning carrying 81 Afghans, all of them men who had previously come to judicial authorities' attention. It said in a statement that the deportation was carried out with the help of Qatar, and said the government aims to deport more people to Afghanistan in the future. More than 10 months ago, Germany's previous government deported Afghan nationals to their homeland for the first time since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to step up deportations of asylum-seekers. New Chancellor Friedrich Merz made tougher migration policy a central plank of his campaign for Germany's election in February. Just after he took office in early May, the government stationed more police at the border and said some asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe's biggest economy would be turned away. It also has suspended family reunions for many migrants. The flight took off hours before German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt plans to meet his counterparts from five neighboring countries — France, Poland, Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic — as well as the European Union's commissioner responsible for migration, Magnus Brunner. Dobrindt is hosting the meeting to discuss migration on the Zugspitze, Germany's highest peak, on the Austrian border.
