A statement from border authorities noted that 73 people, including individuals from Afghanistan, Somalia, and Yemen, attempted an unlawful entry into Poland from Belarus on Tuesday, as summarized by the border guard on its official Twitter account.
There is a growing pattern of groups attempting to cross the frontier by navigating river passages. The Polish border guard reported that at the Białowieża Border Guard Post, 27 people aimed to cross by fording the Leśna Praw river. Two Bangladeshi nationals were detained on the Polish side, while the remaining 25 individuals withdrew back into Belarus upon spotting Polish patrols.
Within the Bobrowniki area, where the border guard is responsible for monitoring, thirteen people crossed the river Świsłocz: six Syrians, five Iranians, and two Egyptians. All were detained by security forces. These incidents contribute to the ongoing assessment of migrant activity along different segments of the frontier.
Border guard statistics indicate that since the start of the year, approximately 20.6 thousand people have been recorded near the Polish-Belarusian border as making attempts to cross illegally. In July, such attempts reached around 4,000, and by August they had accumulated to roughly 2.7 thousand. The Podlaski Border Guard Unit noted that migrants originate from nearly 50 distinct countries, underscoring the international scope of the situation.
In 2022, Poland completed the construction of a 5.5-meter-high steel barrier along a 186-kilometer stretch of the border with Belarus. This barrier forms the core physical measure to deter illegal crossings and is supplemented by a network of cameras and sensors installed along a 206-kilometer section beyond the barrier itself.
Plans for 2024 call for the initiation of similar electronic barriers along the Bug River in the Lubelskie region, as well as along the Świsłocz and Istoczanka rivers in Podlaskie. The selection process for the construction companies was expected to be finalized by the end of 2023, with funding to come from EU sources. Once completed, cameras and motion detectors will be deployed along the border road to enhance monitoring and response capabilities.
READ MORE: Allegations against a South African passenger detained at Chopin Airport. The 41-year-old was suspected of attempting to travel to Dubai with a grenade and ammunition in his luggage (Attribution: wPolityce).