The death toll has risen to 13 people, including seven children, after a man opened fire at his former school in central Russia on Monday, authorities said.

The attack was the latest in a string of school shootings that have rocked Russia in recent years and made the country nervous about efforts to mobilize tens of thousands of men to fight in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced the “inhumane terrorist attack” in the city of Izhevsk, the Kremlin said, adding that the shooter “apparently belongs to a neo-fascist group”.

According to investigators, the attacker was “wearing a black top with Nazi symbols and a balaclava” when his body was discovered.

He was later identified as a local born in 1988 who graduated from that school.

Investigators said two security guards and two teachers were among the victims, while the attacker “committed suicide.”

Authorities previously announced a death toll of nine, but did not specify whether the alleged gunman was among them.

Investigators said they were conducting a search at his home, investigating his “adherence to neo-fascist views and Nazi ideology.”

The governor of the region, Alexander Brechalov, confirmed in a video statement in front of school No. 88 in Izhevsk that there were “victims and wounded among children”.

Rescue workers and medical staff could be seen in the background, some running to the school with stretchers.

Russia’s Health Ministry said “14 ambulance teams” were on the scene to help the injured, news outlets reported.

Brechalov declared a period of mourning in the region until Thursday.

Izhevsk is a city of around 630,000 people and the regional capital of Russia’s Udmurt Republic, located about 1,000 kilometers east of Moscow.

The attack came just hours after a man opened fire at a recruitment center in Siberia, seriously injuring a recruitment officer.

Russia’s last major school shooting took place in April, when a gunman opened fire at a kindergarten in the central Ulyanovsk region, killing a teacher and two children.

The gunman, described as “mentally ill,” was later found dead, with officials saying he shot himself.

Mass shootings at schools and universities in Russia were rare until 2021, when the country was rocked by two separate shootings in the central Russian cities of Kazan and Perm, prompting lawmakers to tighten laws regulating access to guns.

In September 2021, a student in black tactical clothing and helmet, armed with a hunting rifle, swept through the buildings of Perm State University, killing six people, mostly women, and injuring two dozen others.

The gunman resisted arrest and was shot dead by police when he was arrested and taken to a medical facility for treatment.

It was the second such attack this year after a 19-year-old former student shot dead nine people at his old school in Kazan in May.

Investigators said the shooter suffered from a brain disorder but was deemed eligible to obtain a license for the semi-automatic shotgun he used.

On the day of this attack, Putin called for a review of gun control laws, and the age for acquiring hunting rifles was raised from 18 to 21 and medical checks were strengthened.

Authorities have blamed foreign influence for previous school shootings, saying young Russians have been subjected to similar attacks online and on television in the United States and elsewhere.

Other high-profile shootings have occurred in the Russian army, putting the spotlight on the issue of hazing in the country, where military service is compulsory for males between the ages of 18 and 27.

In November 2020, a 20-year-old soldier killed three comrades at a military base near the city of Voronezh. In a similar attack in 2019, a young recruit shot dead eight soldiers and said he faced bullying and harassment in the army.