Netivot student attempts suicide after grabbing guard's gun

By REBECCA ANNA STOIL
Netivot was shaken late Tuesday morning when a teenager shot himself in the head with a gun he had just stolen from his high school's security guard. The 17-year-old pupil in the 11th grade at the Bnei Akiva High School reportedly wrested the weapon from the hands of the guard who was stationed in front of his school. After a struggle, during which the guard suffered a shoulder injury, the youth ran down the street with the handgun, with the injured guard in hot pursuit. The boy ran less than a kilometer, then put the gun to his head and fired. Magen David Adom teams managed to stabilize the youth sufficiently to transport him to Beersheba's Soroka Medical Center, where he was hospitalized in the intensive care unit. Doctors worked to save the boy throughout the afternoon, but he remained in critical condition. The guard, an employee of the Kahol-Lavan security company, was also taken to Soroka, where he was treated and released. Netivot police said that they believed the guard acted in accordance with the guidelines for his position. Following the incident, the Education Ministry sent psychologists and counselors to talk to the students.