SANTIAGO — President José Antonio Kast announced plans to tighten security measures at Chile's schools following a deadly knife attack that killed a school inspector and wounded four others in late March 2026.
On March 27, 2026, an 18-year-old student carried out a knife attack at a school in northern Chile. The attack killed a 59-year-old school inspector and wounded four other people, including another staff member and three students. One of the victims remains hospitalized in critical condition. The attacker remains in custody.
"We are going to have to take certain measures to protect our students," said President José Antonio Kast. "These measures, which were previously met with strong resistance, now need to be viewed differently. Society has changed."
In a separate incident, a 15-year-old student attempted to enter a school in Curicó with a loaded firearm and ammunition tucked into his waistband. Police arrived at the school, detained the minor, seized the weapon, and arrested him, according to Maj. Juan Díaz Serrano of Chile's police force. According to Serrano, the student did not make any threats or draw the weapon to intimidate any staff member or classmate.
Education Minister María Paz Arzola said her office is drafting a bill that would allow teachers to inspect students' backpacks. Arzola said the government will work to expedite the implementation of metal detectors at schools.
During the 2011 and 2019 social upheavals in Chile, student activists adopted a confrontational stance against political and business elites to demand systemic reforms. In late 2024, an explosion caused by homemade firebombs intended for use during a student protest in Santiago wounded more than 30 students.
José Antonio Kast, a leader of the Chilean far right, took office as President of Chile in early March 2026.