It was during a routine end-of-week assembly held on September 25 at Pakize Bayraktar primary school in southern Turkey that the national anthem was interrupted by a dull metallic glint. That small, quick flash of light was discovered by a teacher to have come from a loaded firearm inside a schoolbag, according to local media reports.

The teacher, supervising the first-grade lineup in the coastal town of Tarsus in the eastern Mediterranean province of Mersin province, found the handgun tucked inside the bag of seven-year-old A.E. The incident sparked an immediate police intervention and the detention of the child's father, local property developer R.E.

According to statements provided to the police, the father, who holds a legal permit for the weapon, admitted to placing the pistol inside his son’s satchel before simply forgetting to remove it.

The child was escorted to the police department's juvenile bureau for formal documentation.

While firearms are common in Turkey, the ease with which a deadly weapon entered a primary school playground has raised concerns. An investigation into the incident was ongoing, with prosecutors assessing potential charges on the negligent storage of a licensed weapon.

Three school shootings in year to date

The incident occurred amid growing concerns over school and street shootings in Turkey, as well as other criminal offences linked to booming civilian firearms ownership in the country.

Only a few days ago, a 15-year-old high school student on September 22 allegedly wounded 11 peers in a shooting outside his high school in western province of Manisa. The incident was the third school shooting in Turkey this year. Two of the injured were described by authorities as in a critical condition.

Together with the boy, the mother, father and grandfather, who reportedly owned the weapon used in the shooting, were also detained.

Two deadly school shootings in April prompted the bringing in of new school security measures for the 2026-2027 academic year, including tighter gun controls, with metal detectors even placed at primary schools.

Education personnel are worried that “copycat” attacks have become a trend. There is no shortage of guns in circulation in Turkey.