The US flag flies at half-staff at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, Aug. 27, 2025. A shooting occurred Wednesday morning at Annunciation Catholic School in the city of Minneapolis, the US state of Minnesota, killing an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old and injuring 17 others, police confirmed. Hours after the shooting, US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation lowering the flags to half-staff in honor of the victims. (Xinhua/Hu Yousong)

US President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff to honor the victims of Wednesday’s shooting at a Minneapolis church that left two children dead and at least 17 others injured, according to media reports.

According to Trump’s order released by the White House, flags will be flown at half-staff until sunset on August 31. The order applies to all US flags flown at public buildings and grounds, military posts and naval stations, and on naval vessels throughout the country and in US territories, possessions, embassies, legations, consular offices and other facilities abroad.

Annunciation Catholic School, located at 509 West 54th Street on the south side of the city, was in an all-school Mass at 8:30 am Wednesday when a gunman came up from the outside of the building and began firing a rifle through the church’s windows as children sat in pews during the Mass, according to an NBC News report.

Police and other first responders got to the scene quickly, but it is believed at this time the suspect died by suicide. As of 12 pm Wednesday, it is believed that two children, ages 8 and 10, were killed in the gunfire, according to the report.

A total of 17 other individuals, including 14 children, were injured and were transported to area hospitals. A children’s hospital in Minneapolis is reported to have received at least six admissions from the shooting, while 11 others were transported to Hennepin Healthcare, officials said. The 14 children ranged in age from six years old to 15 years of age, while three adult victims were all in their 80s, according to police, per NBC.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz expressed support for the school community in a statement on the social media platform X: “I’m praying for our kids and teachers whose first week of school was marred by this horrific act of violence.”

“Minnesota is heartbroken,” said the governor, urging people to hug their kids close.

The tragedy in Minneapolis marked the fifth planned school shooting involving active shooters in the US in 2025, according to a school shooting tracker by NBC News.

The other shootings occurred at Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology in Inglewood, California, on May 2; Florida State University in Tallahassee on April 17; Pasadena Memorial High School in Texas on February 1; and Antioch High School in Nashville, Tennessee, on January 22, per NBC News.

Global Times