Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned the deadly knife attack at a Benedictine abbey in southeastern Poland, saying the Ukrainian citizen detained over the incident must face full responsibility under Polish law.
A Catholic priest was killed and four other people injured after a 31-year-old Ukrainian man attacked people at the Benedictine Sisters’ Abbey in Jarosław, close to Poland’s border with Ukraine, on Thursday morning.
“A horrific crime at the Benedictine Sisters’ Abbey in Jarosław, committed by a Ukrainian citizen,” Zelensky said in a statement published on Thursday evening and reported by Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform.
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“We are shaken by this evil.”
Zelensky expressed his “deepest condolences” to the family and loved ones of the priest who died and wished the injured a rapid recovery.
“The perpetrator of this evil must bear full responsibility in accordance with the law,” he said.
Ukraine expected a “swift and thorough investigation” into all the circumstances surrounding the attack, Zelensky added.
“It is painful that people are capable of such cruel crimes. We believe that justice will be served.”
Five people attacked
According to Podkarpackie police, officers were called to the abbey on Benedyktyńska Street in Jarosław at around 9.30am on Thursday.
Police said initial findings showed that the suspect had stabbed four men and one woman.
Officers detained the 31-year-old Ukrainian citizen at the scene.
All five victims were taken to hospital. Three of the men initially suffered serious injuries.
The District Prosecutor’s Office in Przemyśl later confirmed that one of the injured people had died after being taken to hospital.
Subsequent reporting identified the victim as a Catholic priest.
Three clergy members were among the five people attacked, prosecutors told journalists.
By Thursday evening, prosecutors continued to report one fatality. One injured priest had been discharged, while other victims remained in hospital.
Suspect had entered Poland from Germany
Prosecutors said the detained man had entered Poland from Germany during the night before the attack and was travelling towards the Polish-Ukrainian border.
He was reportedly heading towards the Korczowa border crossing but did not cross into Ukraine.
Investigators said he subsequently arrived at the abbey in Jarosław.
According to information given by prosecutors to Polish media, the man entered a kitchen area within the complex, where the first confrontations occurred, before the incident continued elsewhere on the abbey grounds.
Investigators are still reconstructing the exact sequence of events.
Blood samples have been taken for testing, while prosecutors are also assessing whether the suspect is fit to be formally questioned.
No motive has yet been established.
The prosecution said the attack occurred “for reasons not yet determined” and that investigators were continuing to secure evidence and establish the circumstances.
There is therefore currently no confirmed basis for describing the attack as terrorism, a politically motivated act or an attack motivated by hostility towards Christianity.
Tusk promises full force of Polish law
Prime Minister Donald Tusk also responded publicly to the attack.
“The murderer from Jarosław is in the hands of the Polish Police,” Tusk wrote on X.
“The perpetrator is a citizen of Ukraine. He will be punished with the full severity of Polish law.”
Tusk also expressed sympathy with the victims’ families.
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński confirmed that the suspect had been detained immediately and said police and prosecutors were investigating the motive and circumstances.
President Karol Nawrocki also responded to the killing, saying the state must act swiftly and firmly in enforcing the law following such attacks.
Ukrainian authorities condemn attack
Zelensky’s intervention followed an earlier condemnation from Ukraine’s diplomatic representatives in Poland.
The Ukrainian side expressed confidence that Polish authorities would establish the circumstances of the attack and called for individual criminal responsibility to be distinguished from hostility towards Ukrainians more broadly.
Zelensky himself made the nationality of the alleged attacker explicit in the opening sentence of his statement.
His response came only hours after the attack and while the Polish investigation remained at an early stage.
The incident occurred in Jarosław in Poland’s Podkarpackie region, around 30 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.
The historic Benedictine complex dates from the 17th century and includes a monastery, church and retreat facilities.
Police and prosecutors are expected to provide further information once the suspect can be questioned and investigators establish a possible motive.
