Six Killed, 15 Wounded as Gunman Fires From Car in Krakow's Main Market Square

A gunman fired on crowds in the Main Market Square in Krakow, Poland, on Saturday, Nov. 7, killing six people and wounding at least 15. Poland's Malopolska regional government confirmed the figures. The attack began around 3 p.m. local time.

The death toll climbed through the afternoon. Early reports put it at five, and the earliest police and city accounts listed fewer. The regional government's post on X raised it to six.

Krakow police said the victims were four women and two men.

How the attack unfolded

The shooter fired at random people from a moving car, according to Malopolska Police and Krakow city officials. The local government said initial information pointed to shots from a passing vehicle. A fire service spokesperson told Polsat News the same.

The incident occurred near Slawkowska Street, just off the main square. Video from the scene shows a black sedan racing through the square as dozens of people ran in different directions.

Officers confronted him a short distance from the initial shooting. Police shot and wounded him, then took him into custody. He was taken to a hospital.

Video posted on social media appears to show an injured officer firing at the suspect, dropping to his knees and struggling to reload with no backup visible nearby.

The police casualties

Two police officers were among the wounded. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said one officer has a gunshot wound. The second is in very serious condition after taking three gunshot wounds and was undergoing surgery.

Kierwiński said the officers "risked their lives" and "acted immediately," and credited them with the quick arrest.

Malopolska Police said reports that an officer had been killed were incorrect.

What police say about the suspect

Krakow police said on social media that the perpetrator is a Polish citizen and the only known attacker. They denied reports that a second perpetrator was being sought.

Police spokesperson Katarzyna Cisło told TVN24 that the man wore military-style fatigues and used a military-type long gun. Officers found many pieces of other weapons, along with ammunition, in his car.

A police officer told the news site Onet that the man carried no identification documents. Police established who he was through "operational work." Authorities have not released his name.

Cisło said the man acted alone and that the public is safe.

Reaction

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the Interior Minister was keeping him informed and that police were "investigating the background and all the circumstances of the attack." A government spokesperson said Tusk later headed to Krakow from Warsaw.

President Karol Nawrocki said he was "deeply concerned by reports of the tragic events in central Kraków" and that the head of the National Security Bureau was on his way to the city.

U.S. Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose called it "a savage and murderous attack that's shattered the peace of Poland." EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said "Poland does not stand alone."

Mass shootings are rare in Poland, a country of 38 million. A woman in her sixties who gave her name only as Annette told Agence France-Presse she saw a man shooting at people and walking around the square. "We've never seen anything like this before," she said.

The setting

Krakow is Poland's second-largest city, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) from Warsaw. Its Main Market Square sits beside St. Mary's Basilica and draws a large share of the roughly 15 million tourists who visit each year, according to Times of India figures.

A Saturday afternoon in a square like that means a dense crowd of locals and visitors. Emergency services urged people to stay away from areas where police and rescue workers were operating. An air ambulance helicopter was also sent to the scene.

What remains open

Police have not stated a motive. They have not said how the man obtained a military-type rifle and a car full of other weapons and ammunition. No charges have been announced.

The suspect's condition has not been disclosed beyond the fact that he is hospitalized after being shot. The second wounded officer's surgery is the most immediate unknown. Tusk's visit to Krakow and the National Security Bureau's arrival are the next signs of how the investigation will be run.