Serbia rocked by consecutive shootings: 17 dead, 21 injured in two days

This incident occurred just one day after a tragic event where nine individuals were shot and killed at an elementary school in the capital city of Serbia, reported AFP.

As per the state-run RTS television, an individual wielding an automatic weapon attacked on Thursday near Mladenovac by firing shots from a moving vehicle before escaping. Authorities are currently on the lookout for the attacker.

An AFP photographer present at the scene reported that there was a significant security presence, including helicopters buzzing over the area.

Police had blocked the road leading to the villages of Malo Orasje and Dubona.

N1 television revealed that concerned family members had gathered outside the emergency medical center in Belgrade, where at least eight injured individuals were receiving treatment. Health Minister Danica Grujicic made a brief visit to the center, while Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic referred to the shooting as a "terrorist act," as reported by RTS.

The Balkan nation is grappling with the aftermath of a rare school shooting incident that occurred on Wednesday.

A 13-year-old student killed eight peers and a security guard at the Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school in downtown Belgrade, leaving six students and a teacher wounded.

Health officials stated that two individuals remain in critical condition.

Despite the usual festive atmosphere during spring in Serbia, a three-day mourning period is set to begin on Friday.

Serbia seldom experiences mass school shootings, making Wednesday's incident a tragic and unforgettable event in recent history, according to President Aleksandar Vucic.

In a national address following the school shooting, Vucic suggested stricter gun control measures, including a two-year pause in issuing firearm licenses.

The Interior Ministry has appealed to all gun owners to keep their weapons locked away in safes; those who do not comply will have their guns confiscated.

The Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school remained cordoned off on Thursday, with police guarding its entrance.

Hundreds of individuals continued to visit the school to pay their respects, leaving flowers, candles, and toys at a makeshift memorial.

In addition, people from other cities, such as Zagreb in Croatia and Banja Luka in the Bosnian Serb administrative capital, also lit candles and laid flowers to honor the victims.

Churches in Belgrade held services for the victims, while the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), Patriarch Porfirije, referred to the shooting as a "catastrophe," one that has never occurred in the nation's history.

In the Mladenovac region, a villager shot and killed 13 of his neighbors and relatives in April 2013.