A shooting in the tourist heart of Poland’s second city of Krakow has left five people dead and around a dozen wounded, police have said.
“A man drove a car onto Krakow’s main square and began shooting at random people,” a Krakow police spokesman said.
“As a result of the incident, five people were killed and around a dozen others were wounded,” he said.
He said the gunman was “neutralised and shot” by police officers and transported to hospital.
Police say the man acted alone and is Polish. “There is one perpetrator, it is a Polish man,” a spokesperson said.
Police began to receive reports at around 3pm (2pm Irish time) that a car from which shots were being fired at random people had entered the square.
The shooting happened at around 2pm Irish time in Main Market Square
The police service for the Lesser Poland region said on X that police officers were among the wounded.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk described the incident at Main Market Square in the city as “tragic”.
“I am being kept informed by the Minister of the Interior about the situation in Krakow following the tragic shooting,” he wrote in a post on X.
He added that “the police are investigating the background and all the circumstances of the attack”.
Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki said he was “deeply concerned by reports of the tragic events in central Krakow”.
“My thoughts are with the victims, those injured and their families,” he wrote on X.
“I remain in contact with the relevant authorities and expect a full explanation of the circumstances
“The head of the National Security Bureau is on his way to Krakow. The safety of Poles is an absolute priority,” he added.
Shocked by news of a drive-by shooting this afternoon in central Krakow. My thoughts are with the loved ones of the victims & all who were injured. Our Embassy in Warsaw is monitoring the situation. Any Irish citizens in the area should follow the directions of local authorities.
— Helen McEntee TD (@HMcEntee) November 7, 2026
Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee has said the Irish embassy in Warsaw is monitoring developments in Krakow.
She said any Irish citizens in the area should follow the directions of local authorities.
She said she was “shocked by news of a drive-by shooting this afternoon” and said her thoughts were with the “loved ones of the victims and all who were injured”.
A shop window is shattered after the shooting
Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek wrote on X that “prosecutors, police and all the relevant services are already working at the scene”.
He vowed that authorities would “ensure that the perpetrator of this crime is held fully accountable and severely punished”.
Police did not immediately advance any potential motives for the gunman.
Shootings are rare in Poland, an EU and NATO member on the alliance’s eastern flank that neighbours Ukraine.
The country was on high alert following a series of stabbings in October, which Mr Tusk at the time denounced as part of a “cult of violence”.
Warsaw, a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, has repeatedly warned of Russian sabotage and hybrid warfare on Polish soil, accusations rejected by Moscow.