2026 Kraków shooting

The 2026 Kraków shooting refers to a mass shooting that took place on 7 November 2026 at the Main Square in the historic centre of Kraków, Poland. A gunman drove a black Subaru hatchback into the crowded square and opened fire with an AR-15 style rifle, killing six people and wounding sixteen others before being shot and incapacitated by two police officers roughly one kilometre south of the square. He was taken into custody and to hospital, where he died two days later, on 9 November 2026.

The attacker was identified as Michał Oksiński, a 24 year old Polish citizen from Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski who worked as a turner at a local refractory materials plant. Before driving to Kraków, he had shot and killed his father, mother and sister, along with two family cats, in their apartment; their bodies were found only after the Kraków attack. He wore military style tactical gear and a Chinese made bulletproof vest, and carried multiple additional firearms in his car, including two AR-15 style rifles and two pistols.

The shooting mattered because it was described by prosecutors as the country's first modern day mass shooting, and Polish officials treated it as an act of terrorism. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said the gunman held far right and ultra nationalist views, though he later said the precise motive remained unclear. Investigators found a Gadsden flag prominently displayed in the suspect's room and were examining other symbols and patches found on his clothing and in his home.

Among those killed in Kraków was the painter Izabela Woźna, who had travelled to the city for the opening of an exhibition of her work. Victims included Polish, British and Austrian nationals. Sixteen others were wounded, including two police officers who were shot in the chest during the final confrontation with Oksiński and who remained in serious condition in the days that followed.

Oksiński's death on the morning of 9 November was announced by police in the Lesser Poland region, who said he had undergone several operations after being shot in the abdomen, thigh and chest during his arrest. Kraków's mayor declared a period of civic mourning, and the President of Poland declared national mourning for 8 and 9 November, with flags flown at half mast across the country. Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the attack an act of terrorism, and tributes and flowers were left at the Main Square in the days after the shooting.