Poland Passes Law to Arm Border Security

Polish lawmakers voted in favor of a bill making it easier for security services to use weapons against migrants on the Belarus border, legislation that has public support but that critics say infringes human rights.

The debate pits Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-EU government against activists who had hoped he would abandon the previous, nationalist administration's approach to the migrant crisis on the bloc's eastern frontier.

Polish parliament speaker, Szymon Holownia, saying: "We will now examine point 38 in our daily agenda: Report of the National Security Commission and Justice and Human Rights Commission on the Senate's resolution on the changes to some bills to improve operations of Polish Armed Forces, police and border guards in the event of the country's security threat."

Poland has been dealing with what it says is a form of hybrid warfare on the border since 2021, when large numbers of migrants started trying to cross illegally.

Both Warsaw and the EU say Belarus and its ally Russia have been orchestrating the crisis by flying in migrants from the Middle East and Africa, something Minsk and Moscow deny.

The situation took a tragic turn in June when a 21-year-old Polish soldier died after being stabbed through the border fence, provoking a wave of grief and anger.

Many Poles were also angered by news that soldiers who had fired warning shots on the border had been arrested and led away in handcuffs, an incident that cost a prosecutor his job.

The bill would allow security services to use force including firearms on the border in certain emergency situations.

Human rights advocates say the bill may prevent proper scrutiny of incidents.