Tens of thousands join nationalist Independence Day march in Warsaw after Krakow attack

Tens of thousands of nationalist sympathisers gathered in Warsaw on Wednesday for Poland's Independence Day march, with police deployed to secure the demonstration. The event took place days after a mass shooting in Krakow that killed six people and intensified political tensions in the country. Participants carrying Polish flags assembled in the capital as the annual march went ahead under close watch.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk called for restraint before the march and urged unity after ministers said the Krakow attacker may have been motivated by far-right ideology. Officials said the man who carried out the attack killed six people and wounded more than a dozen in Krakow's main square on Saturday, 7 November. Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek later said the killer had been interested in the neo-Nazi Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 77 people in Norway in 2011.

The Independence Day march has long been a source of tension between right-wing groups and Poland's governing centrists. It has been held every year on 11 November since 1918, marking the end of more than 100 years of partition by Russia, Prussia and Austria. Critics have repeatedly accused the march of carrying anti-Semitic and anti-immigration rhetoric, while supporters describe it as an expression of national pride.

This year's gathering was expected to draw a record turnout, according to organisers, and included foreign nationalist attendees. Among those named were Spain's Revuelta, a youth movement linked to Vox, and members of the Hungarian far-right Mi Hazank party. The presence of these groups underlined the march's wider appeal to nationalist movements beyond Poland, as well as the political sensitivity surrounding the event.

Poland's conservative-nationalist President Karol Nawrocki was seen attending the march and has previously taken part both in his official capacity and as a private citizen. During the event, he said Poland "does not exist today so that the political elites can grant themselves the right to manage citizens ... against the will of the nation," in a direct reference to the centrist government. His appearance added to the significance of the march at a time of heightened domestic division.

What remains unclear is how many people ultimately attended and whether there were any incidents during the march itself. The immediate focus is on the police operation in Warsaw and the political response to the Krakow attack, which has sharpened debate over extremism and public order. The march is likely to remain a point of contention as authorities assess the security and political implications of the violence and the nationalist mobilisation that followed.

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