On Monday, two teenage boys opened fire inside a classroom at San Jose National High School in Tacloban, central Philippines, killing three fellow students and wounding 20 others. The suspects, aged 14 and 15, were taken into custody shortly after the attack, which police described as rare in a country where school shootings are uncommon.

According to Philippine police, the 14-year-old used a 9mm pistol taken from his aunt, a police officer who has since been suspended; the 15-year-old allegedly fired a .38 revolver registered to his grandfather’s security agency. The older suspect has been charged with murder, while the younger boy is exempt from criminal prosecution under a 2006 law that sets the minimum age of criminal responsibility at 15. Both told investigators they had been bullied at school, a claim officials are examining alongside other possible factors.

In response, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center temporarily blocked the first-person shooter game Gorebox, which the 14-year-old was known to play. The agency said the ban would allow a “thorough assessment” of whether the platform influenced the suspects, though it acknowledged that scientific research has not established a direct causal link between video games and violent behaviour. Separately, Philippine authorities said they foiled a potential second school attack in Leyte province on Wednesday night, after Senator Bam Aquino alerted the interior secretary to online chatter about an impending mass shooting. Police traced the threats to a 14-year-old girl at Tolosa National High School, who had created multiple Facebook accounts to post warnings. She was taken into custody, the posts were deleted, and officials said no firearms were found; the threat was “neutralised”.

The incidents have intensified calls from lawmakers in Manila for stricter regulation of children’s social media use, mandatory security upgrades in schools, and a review of the juvenile justice law. The Tacloban school lacked a perimeter fence, allowing the armed students to enter through the rear, according to the education secretary. Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian urged passage of a bill that would bar children under 16 from social media platforms, while other senators demanded metal detectors and CCTV cameras on campuses.

The investigation into the Tacloban shooting continues, with police examining the suspects’ online activity and possible planning. The temporary block on Gorebox remains in place pending the cybercrime agency’s assessment. No further active threats have been identified, officials said.