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School shooting in Graz: Teacher describes traumatic encounter with perpetrator
School shooting in Graz on June 11, 2025: A teacher describes the traumatic moment and the focus on collective grief management.
School shooting in Graz: Teacher describes traumatic encounter with perpetrator
On June 11, 2025, a shocking school shooting occurred in Graz, in which a 21-year-old ex-student opened fire and killed ten people. The use of weapons, including a shotgun and a Glock pistol, resulted in a traumatic experience for those present. Paul Nitsche, a Protestant religion teacher at BORG Dreierschützengasse, was alone in an empty class at the time because the eighth grade students had no lessons. Nitsche heard the shots and decided to leave the stairwell, where he unexpectedly came face to face with the perpetrator.
Nitsche describes the moment of encounter as surreal and stressful. He saw the perpetrator trying to shoot a door lock. “This moment will stay with me for a while,” he says as he processes the serious emotions that this day has triggered. Although Nitsche is a trained emergency counselor, he recognizes that even professional preparation has its limits in such extreme, exceptional situations. To maintain emotional support, he plans to work through the situation together with colleagues, students and school psychologists.
Importance of cohesion
In the debriefings of the traumatic event, the focus of the conversations with those affected was less on the perpetrator, who was not known to Nitsche, but rather on the concerns and needs of the injured. Nitsche emphasizes the importance of solidarity within the community during this difficult time. “We have to take small steps in dealing with grief,” he says, comparing the current tragedy with an earlier one that occurred in Graz in 2015, in which a driver killed several people. “It is crucial that we stand together as a community,” he continued.
In response to the events, schools in Vorarlberg held a minute's silence to commemorate the victims of violence and terror and to take a stand against violence. This action aimed to strengthen unity and cohesion across different religions and parties. It is an important sign in times when society has to react to such tragic incidents and when the discussion about safety and violence prevention is more relevant than ever.