Applause after the bugle call: Kraków gathers for a silent march

At 5 pm on Monday, the hejnał, Kraków's famous bugle call, sounded from St Mary's Tower. Then something unusual happened: people on the Main Square began to applaud.

It was a quiet, heartfelt moment. Locals and tourists stood together in reflection, paying tribute to the victims.

What happened?

A gunman attacked on Kraków's Main Square, and six people were killed. The square was reopened afterwards, and it has since filled with candles, flowers and people. One Polsat News reporter described a deep silence over the place, and said she had known the square for 30 years and could not remember anything like it.

On Monday, people kept coming. Many stopped for a moment of reflection, and the applause after the 5 pm bugle call became a shared gesture of respect.

What's planned for tonight?

At 8 pm, a Marsz Ciszy (silent march) is due to take place in Kraków. People were already gathering on the Main Square earlier in the day.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk is also expected to come to Kraków.

What has happened since?

The city has said it will not cancel its Christmas Market. Poles have donated over €1 million within hours for the officers who stopped the gunman. The attacker has since died in hospital, and the investigation continues.

The case has also stirred political arguments. Culture minister announced a complaint to the broadcasting regulator KRRiT after comments by the head of Telewizja Republika, who questioned the police presence at the scene.

For now, though, the square belongs to those who came to remember.