March of Silence held in Kraków in memory of the victims of the shooting on the Main Square

March of Silence along the sites of the attack

On the evening of 9 November, the last day of the national mourning declared by President Karol Nawrocki (8–9 November), a March of Silence was held in Kraków in memory of the victims of the 7 November shooting on the Main Square. The march began exactly at 20:00 to the sound of the hejnał — the bugle call from the tower of St. Mary's Basilica — at the intersection of the Main Square and Sławkowska Street, where the first shots rang out. Participants walked to St. Mary's Basilica, and the procession ended at the Town Hall Tower. Candles were lit at each of the three places where the victims of the attack died. There were no speeches during or after the march — as Kraków Mayor Łukasz Gibas had announced in advance, Euronews reported.

Who attended and what the authorities said

At the mayor's invitation, the march was attended by President of Poland Karol Nawrocki, Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Archbishop of Kraków Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, Małopolska Voivode Krzysztof Klęczar and Voivodeship Marshal Łukasz Smółka. Before the ceremony, Gibas called on residents to honour the memory of the victims: 'In this difficult time, let us show solidarity and demonstrate that Kraków will always be a proud city, but also a hospitable and open one.' Tusk wrote on X: 'This evening in Kraków, thousands of Poles gathered to pay tribute to the victims of the 7 November attack. Rest in peace.' At the finale, a trumpeter played 'The Sound of Silence,' and Cardinal Ryś said a short prayer for the deceased.

Awards for the wounded police officers and their condition

Even before the march began, Head of the Bureau of National Security Bartosz Grodecki announced that President Nawrocki had awarded the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta to Senior Sergeants Jakub Kulik and Artur Moroński — for outstanding services in ensuring public safety, and for courage and selflessness in the performance of their duties. 'The heroic conduct of the officers, who stopped the attacker at the risk of their own lives, commands admiration and deserves the highest recognition,' Grodecki said, conveying the president's position. The president personally presented the awards to the wounded men.

Coming out of the coma and the circumstances of the attack

Twenty-seven-year-old Moroński and 24-year-old Kulik were the first to confront the armed attacker in central Kraków on Saturday. They neutralised the shooter but were themselves wounded and taken to hospital in critical condition, where they were placed in a medically induced coma. On Sunday, doctors began bringing both men out of the coma. Mayor Gibas said that Moroński had been extubated and his condition had begun to improve. According to the mayor of Mużyna, Jan Gołba, Moroński's first words after waking up were: 'Is Kuba alive?'

Victims and mourning in the city

On Saturday, 24-year-old Michał Oksiński drove a car onto the Main Square of Kraków and opened fire with an automatic weapon, apparently at random. Six people were killed — four Polish citizens, a Briton and an Austrian citizen; 16 were wounded, including two police officers and the attacker himself, who died in hospital early on Monday morning. Among the 15 wounded were citizens of the United Kingdom, Portugal, Russia, Germany and Austria. In Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, in the attacker's family apartment, police also found the bodies of his parents and sister — presumably, they had been killed several hours before the attack in central Kraków.

Extended city mourning

The national mourning ended on 9 November, but the Kraków authorities extended the period of mourning in the city until the end of Wednesday, 11 November. Flags on public buildings will remain at half-mast or with black ribbons, and signs of mourning have also appeared on public transport — flags with black ribbons have been placed on Kraków's buses and trams. Residents can express their condolences to the families of the victims in a book of condolences in the vestibule of the Town Hall on Plac Wszystkich Świętych (until 11 November, from 9:00 to 19:00) and in an online book available until 19:00 on 11 November.