The key facts

  • On the evening of November 7, a man opened fire on pedestrians from a car on the Main Market Square in Krakow; six people were killed, including a police officer, 15 were injured, 12 of them seriously
  • Police refuted reports of two shooters: the attacker acted alone; according to various sources, he is 24–25 years old, and media outlets describe him as a former soldier
  • Mourning has been declared in Krakow from November 8 to 11; Donald Tusk urged politicians “not to play with this tragedy” and is heading to the city

What happened

On the evening of November 7, an armed man wearing a helmet and a bulletproof vest drove a black car onto the Main Market Square in central Krakow and opened fire on people there directly from the vehicle. He also fired at a tram — this is reported by the Krakow city portal. After that, the attacker tried to flee; according to Gazeta.Ru, he drove about one and a half kilometers, continuing to shoot, but crashed into another car and was detained. During the arrest, one of the law enforcement officers fired seven shots at the attacker, who was dressed in camouflage; the shooter was taken to a hospital and operated on, and is now in stable condition.

Victims and information about the attacker

According to the latest data, six people were killed, including a police officer, and 15 more were injured, 12 of them seriously. Among the wounded are police officers: one has a single gunshot wound, the other three; doctors are fighting for their lives. The police of the Lesser Poland Voivodeship refuted reports that had emerged about two shooters: according to them, one person opened fire and has been detained. Sources differ on the attacker's identity: the LoveKrakow portal describes him as a Pole aged 24–25, Polsat News claims he is a 25-year-old soldier from Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski, and the outlet Onet reportsthat the shooter is a former member of the Polish army. According to Gazeta.Ru, the prosecutor's office identifies the suspect as a 24-year-old citizen of Poland; media outlets claim he used a self-loading rifle of the AR-15/M4 family. The exact number of shooters and the attacker's status (an active or former soldier) remain contradictory reports from different outlets.

The authorities' response

The Mayor of Krakow, Lukasz Gibala, declared mourning until November 11: from Sunday, November 8, flags in the city will be flown at half-mast, and all city entertainment events have been canceled; the mayor called on other organizers to follow the authorities' example. Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk addressed politicians on the social network X: “A sincere appeal to politicians of all stripes: do not play with this tragedy”. He promised that the authorities would establish the circumstances of what happened; according to Polish media reports, the prime minister is heading to Krakow. The publications do not report anything about the attacker's motives.