A British national was among six people killed in a mass shooting in Krakow's Main Market Square on November 7, according to Poland's police chief. The gunman, a 25-year-old Polish national, was shot by police and taken to hospital in a serious condition.
Attack in the Main Market Square
The incident occurred shortly after 3.30pm local time when the suspect drove into the square and opened fire with an automatic weapon, killing four women and two men and injuring at least 15 others. Police exchanged fire with the suspect three minutes after receiving reports of the attack, said Polish police chief Marek Boron. Speaking at a press conference, Boron confirmed that one of the six people killed was British. Three victims were Polish nationals, while the remaining two have yet to be identified.
Krakow police said the gunman had driven around the area firing at random people from his vehicle. Two police officers were also wounded, with one left in a serious condition. Katarzyna Cislo, a spokesperson for Krakow police, told TVN24 that the attacker was wearing military-style fatigues and a bulletproof vest and had used a military-type long gun. She described the incident as a “wild ride” around the Main Square, explaining why people were wounded at several different locations.
Suspect's background and response
Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski said the suspect appeared to have been fascinated by far-right ideologies and held “very radical” and “ultra-nationalistic” views. Poland's Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz described the shooting as an “act of terror” against the people of Krakow. The suspect was eventually shot and wounded during an exchange of gunfire with police a short distance from where the attack began. He was taken to hospital for surgery and remains in a serious condition. Police said the attacker continued firing at officers even after being shot.
Investigators believe he acted alone. Officers discovered numerous other weapons and ammunition inside his car as searches continued. The attack also left two horses injured after they were shot in the square. Animal rights group OTOZ Animals said both animals survived, with one grazed by a bullet and the other suffering an injury to its leg. A tram driver also reported that his vehicle had been shot at by a man in a moving car shortly before the main attack, and the window of the driver's cabin was shattered.
Official reaction and aftermath
Krakow mayor Lukasz Gibala announced the city would remain in official mourning until Wednesday, but vowed it would continue to welcome visitors. “The square will belong to us again,” he said in a video posted on X. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk praised the police officers who responded to the shooting, while President Karol Nawrocki said his thoughts were with the victims, injured people and their families. US ambassador to Poland Tom Rose described the shooting as a “savage and murderous attack” which had shattered the peace of the country.
Mass shootings are uncommon in Poland. However, three attacks at schools in the central province of Mazovia took place within four days in mid-October, leaving one person dead and several others injured, including children. It remains unclear whether the firearm used in Saturday's attack, or the other weapons found in the suspect's car, were legally owned. Around 411,000 people hold gun permits in Poland, which has a population of approximately 37 million. In the aftermath of the shooting, Warsaw mayor Rafal Trzaskowski announced increased security measures in the capital, including road barriers along major streets in the old town.
