Politicians united in expressing their sincere and deepest condolences to the victims' families.
"No problem in the world can be resolved with a knife or any other weapon," President Peter Pellegrini stated on social media.
“I'm gathering all the relevant data on the tragic event,” Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) posted on social media, adding that in his opinion, it's difficult to understand what happened at the secondary school.
Education Minister Tomas Drucker (Hlas-SD) stated he would do everything in his power to determine the causes of the knife attack, take appropriate actions, and implement measures to protect children and teachers in the future. Drucker called for approaching the tragedy with the utmost sensitivity and urged avoiding speculation or hasty conclusions.
Opposition Progresivne Slovensko leader Michal Simecka stated that such terrible violence has no place in our society. “I hope there will not be more victims,” said Branislav Grohling, the leader of SaS opposition party. Christian Democrats chair Milan Majersky who is the Presov county administration head assured representatives will receive assistance from the municipality. MPs from Igor Matovic’s party Slovakia called upon politicians not to take advantage of the tragedy so as not to escalate tensions in society.
Serious violence is rare in Slovakia, a central European nation of 5.4 million, writes Reuters press agency. The country was shocked last May when Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot in an assassination attempt.
Source: TASR, STVR
