AFPA gunman has shot dead 12 people, including two children, in southern Montenegro, police said.
Authorities say at least some of Wednesday’s deaths occurred at a restaurant in the Cetinje neighborhood due to an argument between customers.
It was later confirmed that the attacker had taken his own life.
The government declared three days of national mourning starting Thursday, and Prime Minister Milojko Spjic said the shootings had “shrouded our country in darkness.”
Police said the attack began at 17:30 (16:30 GMT) when a man named Aleksandar Martinovic, 45, opened fire inside the restaurant.
He killed his own family, two of the restaurant owner’s children (ages 10 and 13), and the owner, according to a Montenegrin police commander.
The gunman went on to kill more people at other locations.
Interior Minister Danilo Saranović said the incident was “the result of interpersonal chaos,” according to AFP.
According to the police, the suspect had been drinking heavily before the crime began.
Four people were seriously injured in the shooting and were taken to the hospital.
Ministry of Interior of MontenegroThe gunman ran away but was later fatally wounded while surrounded by police who demanded he drop his weapon, police said. He died on the way to the hospital.
“This senseless act has caused immeasurable grief and suffering to each of us. There are no words of consolation,” the prime minister said in a post on social media.
Milojko Spajic said the National Security Council would “urgently consider all options” to protect the public, including a complete ban on carrying weapons.
Mass shootings are relatively rare in the small Balkan country.
In 2022 One man killed several peopleIncluding children in Cetinje after a family dispute.
