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A gunman drove onto the Main Market Square in Krakow, Poland, on Saturday, November 7, and opened fire on random people, killing five and injuring more than a dozen, police said. The attack began shortly after 3 p.m. local time in one of Europe's busiest tourist squares. Police shot the suspect and took him to a hospital.
Early reports from Poland's fire service put the toll at two dead and 10 injured. Malopolska regional police later confirmed five deaths and said "over a dozen" people were wounded. Two police officers are among the injured, according to RMF24 and Interia. An air ambulance landed in the square.
Fire service spokesman Hubert Ciepły said the shots came from a Subaru with no license plates that entered the square from Slawkowska Street. Local reporting traces the car's route across the square and south toward Stradomska Street. Police shot the driver at the junction of Stradomska and Dietla streets, about half a mile from the square.
Gazeta Krakowska reported that the gunman wore military-style clothing, fired on officers before they returned fire, and had a large quantity of weapons and ammunition in the car. Radio station RMF FM reported that the suspect is a 25-year-old man who used an AR-15-type rifle. Police have not confirmed his identity or a motive.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the interior minister was keeping him informed and that police are investigating "the background and all circumstances of the attack." U.S. Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose called it a "savage and murderous attack" in a post on X.
The shooting comes weeks after a series of stabbings in Poland in October, which left the country on high alert, AFP reported. Krakow is Poland's second-largest city, about 155 miles south of Warsaw. Its Main Market Square is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is lined with cafés that draw large crowds year-round. Casualty figures and details may change as police release more information.
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