Malaysia has seen another school attack. A 16-year-old male student brought sharp weapons to an international school in Kuching, Sarawak, on Wednesday (21 October) morning and attacked a teacher who tried to confiscate them. The teacher was injured and taken to a hospital. Before the attack, the student strapped a mobile phone to his head and livestreamed the incident on social media.
According to Sinar Harian, school staff immediately restrained the student and took him to the principal’s office to await the police. Acting Sarawak Police Commissioner Saifullizan Ishak led a team to the scene to investigate after receiving a report.
In a note to parents, the school said it immediately called an ambulance to take the injured teacher to a hospital. It had received no reports of other injuries.
After strapping the phone to his head, the student livestreamed his preparations and then rushed into a classroom to attack the teacher. Footage circulating online shows him in a school toilet before the incident, with weapons and other items in his schoolbag including a lighter, what appeared to be a homemade incendiary device, a knife and an axe. He appeared calm as he prepared the weapons, humming while arranging his equipment.
The footage then shakes violently as he runs and carries out the attack. The phone falls off and the livestream goes black. Several students can clearly be heard screaming in the classroom.
It is understood that after arriving at the school, police escorted the student to Sarawak General Hospital for an examination at around noon. The injured female teacher was taken to a nearby private hospital for emergency treatment and received 10 stitches for a wound to her hand.
DCP Saifullizan Ishak said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon that the control centre at Kuching Police Headquarters received a report at 8am that day that a male student had brought firecrackers to school and attacked a teacher with an axe.
Police investigations found that the student had a penknife and a small axe. Police are investigating the case under the Penal Code provisions on causing hurt with dangerous weapons and the Explosives Act 1957.
Another video circulating on social media shows the student livestreaming alone on a street in Padungan on 9 October. He talked to himself throughout the livestream, discussing religion, family relationships and personal identity.
During the nearly 16-minute livestream, he spoke about difficulties with his studies and expressed dissatisfaction with his school. He felt misunderstood and discussed his personal identity and uncertainty about the future.
The livestream attracted little attention at the time. Before the attack on Wednesday, he also posted a message in English on Facebook saying he lacked support and companionship.
