At least 15 people have been killed in a shooting in central Prague, according to Czech emergency services.

Another 30 people are injured, including nine seriously wounded, according to the Czech rescue service.

Police previously said the gunman – a student at the Faculty of Arts at Charles University in Prague – had been “eliminated”.

His body was found in the university’s philosophy building, according to officials.

Police said the gunman’s father was also found dead earlier today.

Officers are still sweeping the area, including the building’s balconies, for possible explosives.

In a post on X, Czech interior minister, Vit Rakusan, said he was travelling to the scene.

Prime Minister Petr Fiala also cancelled his scheduled events on Thursday to travel to Prague.

The incident took place in the area of Jan Palach Square, in the city’s Old Town district.

Staff at the Faculty of Arts of Charles University were sent an emergency email during the shooting in which staff were urged to “stay put”, according to Reuters.

“Don’t go anywhere, if you’re in the offices, lock them and place furniture in front of the door, turn off the lights,” the email said, according to the news agency.

A police officer stands on the bank of the Vltava river in downtown Prague, Czech Republic Pic:AP
One X user posted a photo of a group of students, hiding crouched on a building ledge. Other pictured posted on social media showed students barricading themselves into classrooms.

Klara, a student at the university, told local media that she was among those who police evacuated from the building.

“It was terribly scary,” she told iDnes.cz.

“There were a lot of policemen everywhere, who were shouting at us with submachine guns, telling us to run outside.”

Prague mayor Bohuslav Svoboda said both The Philosophical Faculty of Charles University and the Academy of Arts, Architecture, and Design, had been evacuated during the shooting.

Petr Nedoma, director of the Rudolfinum Gallery at a concert hall across Palach Square, told Czech television he saw the gunman with an “automatic weapon”.

“He was shooting toward the Manes Bridge, repeatedly, with some interruptions.”

He said he saw the gunman put his hands up before throwing the weapon down on the street, where it landed on a pedestrian crossing.

Police gave no details about the victims or the circumstances of the shooting.