Teen arrested after two shot at Aubagne middle school

French police detained a 14-year-old pupil Monday after gunfire wounded two staff members at an Aubagne middle school. The principal and a teacher suffered non-life-threatening leg injuries before another worker disarmed the teenager, prosecutors said. Officers immediately took the boy into custody.

No connection between the attack and ongoing national school funding protests has been established. Police said the middle school was not affected by those demonstrations on Monday.

The incident occurred at the Joseph Lakanal middle school in Aubagne. The municipality sits roughly 15 kilometers, or 9 miles, east of the port city of Marseille.

Prosecutors said the boy concealed a hunting gun inside a guitar case. A staff member disarmed him after he roamed across two separate floors of the building.

Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone said the student fired once or twice on the first floor. Those initial blasts struck the principal and the teacher in the legs, Bessone stated.

Police said the victims were hit with ammunition used in 12-gauge shotguns. Both injured staff members were taken to a hospital for treatment.

The boy went to the second floor and opened fire twice more, Bessone said. He fired multiple shots during the incident.

Aubagne’s mayor and police confirmed that no pupils were hurt. The mayor said mental health counseling is now being offered to pupils.

Education Minister Édouard Geffray addressed the violence in a social media statement on X.

“This unacceptable act once again highlights the rise of unbridled violence in our society, against which we must all mobilize. In words as well as deeds.”

Gun violence committed by pupils on school grounds remains rare across France. In 2017, a 16-year-old student with a rifle, pistols and a small grenade wounded three students and a principal. That shooting occurred at a high school located in southern France.

Student stabbings at schools are also uncommon nationwide. Last year, a 14-year-old student stabbed a middle school worker to death in eastern France during a bag check. In 2025, a 15-year-old student stabbed four peers at a western France high school, killing one.

French public prosecutors lead criminal investigations and determine whether formal preliminary charges should follow police detention. Suspects taken into custody can be held for questioning before magistrates review the case files.

Aubagne officials continue to coordinate with investigators following the detention of the youth.