Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has ordered the interior ministry and police to stop issuing licenses to possess, purchase, and carry firearms following a deadly school shooting. The attack, described as the deadliest school attack in recent years, left nine dead. The bodies of the teenage attacker and the grandparents he killed have since been cremated.
In response to the tragedy, Thailand has suspended a controversial program that allowed police and local officials to buy discounted firearms. Prime Minister Anutin has called for tighter controls and decisive penalties for firearms offences.
The government has further pledged to crack down on illegal firearms after two deadly shootings near Bangkok intensified calls for tougher enforcement. It remains to be seen how far the government will go to tighten gun control in the country, which has experienced a string of high-profile shootings in recent years.