Over 30 killed in Thailand day-care shooting; gunman then kills family, self: All you need to know

In Thailand, the rate of gun ownership is high compared with some other countries in the region but official figures do not include huge numbers of illegal weapons, many of which have been brought in across porous borders over the years from strife-torn neighbours.

As many as thirty-four people were killed in Thailand on Thursday in a mass shooting at a day-care centre by a former policeman who killed his wife and child before shooting himself dead.

According to a local police officer, the victims of a mass shooting at a daycare centre in Thailand included children as young as 2 years old.

There were 22 children among the victims of the suspected gunman. About 30 children were at the centre when the gunman came in around lunchtime, district official Jidapa Boonsom told reporters.

Chakkraphat Wichitvaidya, superintendent of Na Klang police station, also told Thai Rath TV that the gunman had been discharged from the police force last year.

The man first shot four or five staff, including a teacher who was eight months pregnant, Jidapa said.

"At first people thought it was fireworks," she added.

Videos posted on social media showed sheets covering what appeared to be the bodies of children lying in pools of blood at the centre in the town of Uthai Sawan in the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu.

Earlier, police said a manhunt was underway for the shooter, and a government spokesman said the prime minister had alerted all agencies to catch the culprit.

The prime minister had alerted all agencies to take action and apprehend the culprit, a government spokesperson said.

In Thailand, the rate of gun ownership is high compared with some other countries in the region but official figures do not include huge numbers of illegal weapons, many of which have been brought in across porous borders over the years from strife-torn neighbours.

Mass shootings are rare but in 2020, a soldier angry over a property deal gone sour killed at least 29 people and wounded 57 in a rampage that spanned four locations.