Erdogan: Turkey will restrict gun ownership

Turkish authorities will adopt additional legal measures restricting firearm ownership by the country's residents and will tighten penalties for gun owners who commit violations, following two shooting incidents at local schools last week.

As reported by TRT Haber, this was announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan following a Cabinet meeting held under his chairmanship.

"Ensuring safety in our schools is our top priority. There will be no concessions on this matter, neither now nor in the future," Erdoğan said. "We will tighten penalties for firearm owners who fail to fulfill their obligations regarding the security and safe storage of their weapons. We will introduce additional legal regulations restricting gun ownership," Erdoğan declared.

He noted that as a result of the incident at a school in the province of Kahramanmaraş in southeastern Turkey on April 15, 9 people were killed and 21 were injured. At a school in the province of Şanlıurfa in the same region on April 14, 19 people were injured.

"We have taken necessary measures regarding accounts spreading false, manipulative, and harmful content on social media and digital communication platforms," the Turkish president said. Erdoğan added that the country's authorities intend to strengthen "virtual patrolling" and bolster law enforcement capabilities in the field of cybersecurity.

"Strengthening cooperation between schools and law enforcement agencies, as well as developing new operational models, will also be among the steps we will take in this process," the Turkish president said.