Kraków shooting: six killed in the city's Main Square

Poland is in mourning after a gunman opened fire on people in Kraków's Main Square on Saturday, November 7. Six people were killed and 16 were injured, according to Poland's interior minister. Prosecutors are treating the attack as a crime of a terrorist nature.

What happened

According to Polish police, the attacker drove onto the Main Market Square, the historic heart of Kraków and one of the busiest public places in Poland, and began shooting at people walking there. The square is lined with cafés and shops and is full of tourists most of the year.

Two police officers confronted the attacker and stopped him. Both officers were wounded, one of them very seriously. The attacker was also wounded, detained alive and taken to hospital for surgery.

In the confusion of the first hours, police briefly reported that there might have been two attackers. They later said this was an error. Poland's defense minister also denied early rumors that the attacker was a soldier.

The victims

Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said six people died, four women and two men, and 16 were injured. That number includes the two police officers and the attacker. Among those identified are three Polish women and a British citizen. Several of the injured are foreign visitors.

The suspect

Polish media report that the suspect is a 24-year-old Polish man from Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a town in south-central Poland. Under Polish practice, he is identified publicly only by his first name and last initial.

According to Rzeczpospolita and other Polish outlets:

• He held a legal permit for sporting firearms.
• He used an AR-15-type semi-automatic rifle in the attack.
• Police recovered four firearms from him and his car, two rifles and two pistols, along with about 500 rounds of ammunition.
• He was wearing camouflage clothing.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that when police searched the suspect's family home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, they found the bodies of three people, two women and a man. Investigators are working to establish what happened there and whether it is connected to the attack. One line of inquiry is that the suspect took a weapon from that home. No motive has been announced.

A country in mourning

President Karol Nawrocki started the procedure to declare national mourning for November 8 and 9, a step that requires the prime minister's countersignature. The president and the prime minister led a silent march through Kraków in memory of the victims.

A place at the heart of Poland

Kraków's Main Market Square is one of the largest medieval town squares in Europe and part of the city's historic center, which was among the first places listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is surrounded by the Cloth Hall and St. Mary's Basilica, whose trumpeter plays a call from the tower every hour. For many Poles it is a symbol of national history and culture, which is why the attack has hit the country so hard.

Emergency services, including an air ambulance that landed near the old town, treated the wounded at the scene before taking them to Kraków hospitals.

Questions investigators are trying to answer

• Whether the attacker planned the shooting alone and how long he prepared.
• Whether the three deaths at his family home happened before the attack.
• Whether there were any warning signs, for example in medical checks or online activity, that were missed.

Why it matters

Mass shootings are extremely rare in Poland, which has some of the strictest gun ownership rules in Europe. Owning a gun requires a police permit, a medical and psychological check and a stated reason, such as sport shooting, hunting or collecting. The fact that the suspect reportedly held a legal sporting permit is likely to lead to questions about how permits are granted and checked.

Reaction abroad

Because one of the victims was a British citizen and several of the injured were foreign visitors, the attack drew attention well beyond Poland. Kraków is one of Central Europe's most visited cities, welcoming millions of tourists each year, and its old town is usually crowded with visitors from across Europe and beyond, even in November.

What to watch next

• Formal charges against the suspect once his condition allows.
• What investigators find about the three deaths in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski.
• Whether the government proposes changes to gun permit rules.
• The identification of the remaining victims.