Man Attacks School Students in China, at Least 7 Dead and 12 Wounded (PHOTO)

Seven students were killed and 12 were injured in a stabbing attack outside of a school in Shaanxi, China, local authorities said Friday.

"At 18:10 local time [12:37 GMT] on April 27, a suspect attacked students leaving the No. 3 middle school in Mizhi County [in Shaanxi province], hurting 12 students, with 7 of them dead from the injuries. The suspect is in custody. The injured students are being treated," the statement published on the official Weibo account of Mizhi County's publicity office read.

READ MORE: London Murder Rate Surpasses New York Amid Surge of Deadly Stabbings

The assailant is a local resident from Mizhi County, who dropped out of the same school he attacked and is still under the age of 18, Shanghai-based Jiemian News reported, quoting a source from the local police.

An unidentified man has attacked children at a Chinese school, killing at least seven and wounding 19 — reports https://t.co/loRjRT5iu2 (photos: sina agency) pic.twitter.com/G9UeZxroHu

— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) 27 апреля 2018 г.

​The assailant wanted to "take revenge against the school and the society," according to the police source.

Most of the victims were female students, as they couldn't escape from the scene fast enough on foot, the police source said.

Pictures circulated on Chinese social media, believed to be from the crime scene, showed victims in school uniforms lying in a pool of blood and a male suspect wearing a black jacket and blue jeans being detained by the police.