A gunman killed at least six people and wounded 16 others in Krakow's main market square on Saturday, Polish authorities said. The suspect, a 25-year-old Polish man, fired from a car at random people across multiple locations in the square using an automatic weapon. Police shot and wounded him during an exchange of fire, and he was transported to a hospital.
Among those killed were four women and two men. One victim was a British national. Three were Polish citizens, and two remain unidentified. Five of the 16 injured were foreign nationals from Austria, Germany, Portugal, Russia and Britain.
Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski said the suspect held "far-right ideologies," "ultranationalistic" and "very radical" views. The man wore military-style fatigues and a bulletproof vest. Police found numerous weapons and ammunition in his car.
The bodies of two women and a man were discovered at the suspect's home in Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski, about 150 kilometers northeast of Krakow. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said there was "much to suggest that they are members of the [suspect's] immediate family" and called the attack a "tragic" incident and an act of terrorism.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki and European Union top diplomat Kaja Kallas expressed condolences. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote that "Germany stands alongside Poland as a friend and partner during these difficult times."
Krakow is Poland's second-largest city with over 800,000 residents and a popular tourist destination.