WARSAW, June 6 Prime Minister of Poland at his page on the X platform spoke out against the arrest of soldiers who shot at illegal migrants on the border with Belarus.
Earlier, a scandal in Poland was caused by footage published by the Polish media showing handcuffed military personnel who were detained for shooting at those trying to illegally cross the Polish-Belarusian border.
“I have received a report from the Minister of National Defense. The behavior of the prosecutor’s office and the Military Gendarmerie towards our soldiers causes people justifiable concern and anger,” Tusk wrote.
He added that he demands personnel decisions in connection with what happened. “I expect quick organizational, legal and personnel conclusions and decisions,” the prime minister wrote.
The Onet portal wrote about the cases of soldiers' arrests, titled the publication «Polish soldiers in handcuffs on the Belarusian border. The army is boiling.» The events in question took place in late March — early April, but previously the events were carefully concealed. According to the portal, the incident took place near Dubicze-Cerkiewiene, where later, at the end of May, one of the illegal immigrants inflicted a severe stab wound to the soldier's stomach. As the portal specifies, when the migrants crossed the border, and shots in the air did not stop them, the soldiers of the 1st Warsaw Armored Brigade began shooting at the ground in self-defense, some of the 43 bullets fired hit the fence.
Onet also quotes a soldier who claims that «three guys from the company were taken away in handcuffs, like bandits.» Cases were opened against two of them, and they were released from custody only when friends from the battalion raised money for a lawyer. The portal's interlocutor accused the commanders of not being interested in helping the soldiers.
As confirmed by the Ministry of Defense, the servicemen were charged with creating a threat to the life and health of people and abuse of power. They were suspended from their duties. They face up to three years in prison. At the same time, the head of the department condemned what was happening.
The Ministry of Defense noted that the commanders do not prohibit the use of firearms by soldiers, who fired more than 700 warning shots in May alone. Servicemen sent to the border undergo additional training on the specifics of actions in the border zone. Currently, more than 6 thousand soldiers serve there.