Thailand’s government will immediately suspend the issuance of new gun permits following a shooting last week in which a 14-year-old killed eight people before taking his own life.
Existing gun owners are already prohibited from carrying their weapons in public, reports BBC.
Thailand has one of the highest rates of civilian gun ownership in Southeast Asia, with around 10.3 million firearms in civilian possession. The country also has high levels of gun crime.
In response to the latest shooting, the Prime Minister has pledged to introduce tough new gun control laws with severe penalties. The government will suspend new permits in the meantime.
According to authorities, a pupil at Debsirin Nonthaburi School outside Bangkok shot his grandparents with a handgun owned by his grandfather last Friday before opening fire on teachers and students at the school.
Both grandparents, five members of the school’s staff and a 12-year-old girl were killed in the shooting.
Police believe the teenager may have taught himself how to use a gun through social media.
They said there was evidence that the boy had watched violent content online and had shown a strong interest in learning how to handle firearms.
