At least 10 killed and four injured in shooting in Montenegro | Montenegro

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At least 10 people, including two children, were killed and four others were wounded in a shooting Wednesday that followed a bar fight in a western Montenegrin town, officials said.

Police identified the attacker as 45-year-old Aco Martinović and said he was on the run.

He killed the owner of the bar in the town of Cetinje, the bar owner’s children and his own family members, Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović said at a press conference.

“At this moment we are focused on arresting him,” he said.

Police deployed special forces to search for the attacker in Cetinje, located about 30 km (18 miles) northwest of the capital Podgorica.

A statement said the man fled the scene armed after opening fire in the bar.

The president, Jakov Milatović, said he was “shocked and shocked” by the tragedy. “Instead of holiday cheer … we have been gripped by grief over the loss of innocent lives,” he said at X.

The Prime Minister, Milojko Spajić, went to the hospital where the injured were being treated and announced three days of mourning.

“This is a terrible tragedy that has affected us all,” he said. “All police teams are out.”

Montenegro, which has about 620,000 people, is known for its gun culture, and many people have traditional weapons.

Wednesday’s shooting was the second gun attack in the past three years in Cetinje, Montenegro’s historic capital. An attacker also killed 10 people, including two children, in August 2022 before being shot dead by a passerby in Cetinje.

RTCG, which published Martinović’s photo on its website, reported that he was known for erratic behavior and had previously been detained for illegal possession of weapons.

The report said he went home to get his gun and came back to the bar, where he opened fire, killing and wounding several people. He then went to another location where he killed the bar owner’s children and a woman, the report added.

Police appealed to residents to remain calm and stay indoors, ruling out a clash between criminal gangs.