The alleged perpetrator is believed to be a former employee of the school.
ADVERTISEMENTAt least three employees at a school in Bosnia and Herzegovina have been killed during a meeting after a gunman, suspected to be the school's former janitor, opened fire in the building with an automatic rifle.
Reports state that the shooting took place at the Sanski Most Gymnasium secondary school in northwestern Bosnia at about 10:15 am.
The deceased have been identified as school director Nijaz Halilović, English teacher Gordana Midžan and secretary Nisveta Kljunić, according to local reports, and police investigations are ongoing.
The alleged suspect opened fire at the school's director and other employees before attempting suicide, but he is expected to recover, regional N1 television reported.
No other details were immediately available. Bosnian schools are closed for the summer holiday, which means no classes were being held at the time of the shooting.
Balkans awash with arms
The Balkan region has been awash with small arms and weapons since the 1990s wars, part of the breakup of Yugoslavia. According to a UNDP study from 2010, there were about 750,000 weapons in illegal possession in Bosnia.
While this number might have been reduced over the past decade due to disarmament drives, other small arms surveys have shown that at least two-thirds of all weapons in the country — believed to be around 1,2 million — remain unregistered.
In neighbouring Croatia, last month a veteran entered a care home for older people in a quiet central town and opened fire, killing six people and wounding six others.
Last May in Serbia, a teenager opened fire at a school with his father's guns, killing nine children and a school guard, while a day later, a 20-year-old shooter killed nine people and wounded 12 in a rampage outside Belgrade, the capital.