A 25-year-old Polish citizen opened fire with an automatic weapon in the main square of Kraków at approximately 3pm on Saturday, resulting in six deaths and 16 injuries. Polish authorities have described the incident as an act of terror. Among the deceased are four women and two men, including one British citizen; the identities of two other victims remain unconfirmed.
The injured include individuals from Britain, Austria, Germany, Portugal, and Russia, according to a government spokesperson. Two police officers were among the wounded, with one reported to be in serious condition after being shot three times during an exchange of fire with the attacker. Earlier in the afternoon, a tram driver reported that his vehicle was shot at by a man in a moving car while passing near the main square, shattering the driver's cabin window.
Later Saturday night, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that three more bodies—two women and one man, believed to be members of the suspect’s family—were discovered at the perpetrator's home. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński stated at a news conference that the suspect was influenced by far-right ideologies and held radical, ultra-nationalist views.
Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz condemned the attack, noting the city's high volume of visitors, while President Karol Nawrocki expressed his concern for the victims and their families. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek affirmed that authorities intend to ensure the perpetrator is held fully accountable. Poland has declared a period of national mourning for Sunday and Monday. Official police statistics indicate that legally owned firearms in Poland exceeded 1 million for the first time this year, with record numbers of gun permits issued in 2025.
The Polish defense minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, called Saturday’s fatal shooting an “act of terror” on the people of Krakow, Poland’s second-largest city, which receives 15 million visitors a year, most of them passing through the main square.
Poland issued a record 50,700 gun permits in 2025, and the number of active permits registered in 2025 was almost double the number registered in 2015, according to the police statistics cited in the report.
