Suspect, a Polish national, was arrested after the shooting that left four women and two men dead.
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At least six people have been killed and 15 others wounded, including police officers and foreign nationals, in a shooting in the centre of Krakow in southern Poland.
Police said that a man drove onto the city’s Main Market Square at about 3pm (14:00 GMT) on Saturday and “began firing at random people from his car”. Four women and two men were killed.
The gunman, who acted alone, was shot by officers and detained, police said. He has since been transported to hospital to receive treatment for his injuries.
The Interior Ministry confirmed that the suspect is a Polish citizen, with Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski saying that the gunman appeared to be “fascinated by far-right ideologies”.
Police officers and foreign nationals were among the casualties.
“According to information from police officers, the man was wearing military-style attire,” a police spokesman told reporters.
“During the arrest, officers used their weapons, but the man returned fire; as a result, two police officers are among the injured.”
Minister Kierwinski said that one of the police officers is in a critical condition. He also said that five foreigners were among the wounded hospitalised victims, and one foreign national was among those killed.
In a post on X, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk praised the “heroic” police response to the “tragic shooting”.
“I am being kept informed by the Minister of the Interior about the situation in Krakow,” he wrote, adding that “the police are investigating the background and all the circumstances of the attack”.
President Karol Nawrocki said his thoughts were with the victims, those affected, and their families.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on social media that he was “receiving dozens of messages from foreign ministers from all over the world offering their condolences”.
Tom Rose, the US ambassador to Poland, called the incident a “horrific mass shooting … a savage and murderous attack that’s shattered the peace of Poland”.
“America stands with Poland at this dark hour,” as Poland stands with the citizens of Krakow, he said on X.
Located about 250km (155 miles) south of the capital, Warsaw, Krakow is the second-largest city in Poland and a popular tourist destination, attracting about 15 million visitors each year.
Deadly shootings are extremely rare in Poland, a European Union and NATO member with 38 million people. But the country was on high alert following a series of stabbings in October, which Tusk denounced as a “cult of violence”.
The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said on X on Saturday that “Poland does not stand alone”.
“The tragic loss of life in the shooting in Krakow is a tragedy that will be felt far beyond Poland,” Kallas said. “My thoughts are with the victims and their families and the first responders.”
Poland, 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.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered condolences, condemning what he called “a shocking crime”.
“Ukraine stands in solidarity with Poland and the Polish people. People have the right to safety,” he said on social media.
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