According to Education Minister Tomáš Drucker (Hlas-SD), security services have been monitoring the radicalization of young people on social media. He believes the online environment plays a significant role in school violence and has repeatedly stressed the need to restrict children's access to social media.
“Similar attacks have recently occurred elsewhere in Europe, not just in Poland. In Italy, there are suspicions that the perpetrators followed instructions or were influenced by external actors. In Poland, a call to action even circulated online in connection with the incident, prompting Polish security services to intervene. They remain in close contact with us as well,” the Slovak minister said.
However, prevention goes beyond banning internet access. According to Terézia Rosenbergerová, the Ministry of Health’s chief expert on child psychiatry, parents also play a crucial role. They should watch for changes in their children's behaviour and seek professional help promptly if concerns arise.
On Monday, 12 October, the Government Council of the Slovak Republic for Mental Health is scheduled to discuss a framework for supporting and developing mental health care for children and young people. Health Minister Kamil Šaško (Hlas-SD) announced the plan last week.
According to the council’s secretary, Desanka Kanderová, the proposed framework is Slovakia’s first strategic document specifically focused on the mental health of young people. It was prepared with the help of an interministerial working group comprising representatives of the ministries of health, labour, social affairs and family, education, interior, and justice.
School violence has also claimed lives in Slovakia, including in attacks involving female victims. On September 29, 2026, a 13-year-old student allegedly stabbed a teacher and a fellow female student to death and seriously injured another teacher in the village of Staškov. In January 2025, an 18-year-old student killed a teacher and a fellow female student in a stabbing attack in Spišská Stará Ves.
Source: STVR
