Philippines gunman kills two in university graduation shooting

Deadly attack takes place near gate at the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City

The shooting took place in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines. EPA

Two people were killed and at least two were wounded in a shooting at a university graduation ceremony in the Philippines capital.

A man opened fire near a gate at the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said.

The shooting took place at about 2.55pm, the MMDA said in a Twitter post.

The suspect was apprehended by police and taken into custody for interrogation, Quezon City police chief Remus Medina told CNN Philippines television channel.

Filipino Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo had been due to attend Ateneo de Manila University’s Law School graduation ceremony as a speaker but had yet to arrive when the shooting took place, the ABS-CBN network reported.

The campus went into lockdown after the shooting, with all afternoon events cancelled.

“Due to the incident at Arete, the 2022 Commencement Exercises of the Ateneo Law School scheduled for today, 24 July 2022, has been cancelled,” Ateneo de Manila University said in a tweet. “Ateneo is continuing to work with the police and other authorities to deal with the incident.”

The shooting comes only a day before President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr is set to deliver his first State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives.