Polish Soldier Cleared for Warning Shots at Belarus Border
A Polish military court acquitted a soldier who fired warning shots at illegal immigrants breaching the Belarus border, ruling he was fulfilling his constitutional duty to defend Poland's territorial integrity.
The Military Garrison Court in Lublin cleared Karol S., a 25-year-old former private in the 1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade, of all charges including abuse of powers and endangering lives, according to Brussels Signal. He had been facing up to three years in prison for an incident that occurred on March 25, 2024, near Dubicze Cerkiewne in eastern Poland.
During the chaotic border breach attempt, Karol S. discharged 12 warning shots from his service rifle along the border road after a group of immigrants ignored repeated verbal warnings, including shouts of “Polish Army, stop or I will shoot!” The illegal crossers had used car jacks to force apart sections of the steel border fence, brought ladders to scale the razor wire, and were hurling stones at Polish guards. No injuries resulted from the warning shots.
Prosecutors had maintained that the soldier exceeded his authority by firing in the direction of the group, which included Polish Border Guard officers and other soldiers. The judge, however, delivered a decisive rejection of this argument.
The law cannot yield to lawlessness, the judge stated, adding that every soldier has a constitutional obligation to protect Poland’s border and that Karol S. was sent to the frontier precisely to protect its inviolability.
The court found the prosecution’s case “entirely misguided,” noting that Karol S. was a trained marksman who acted proportionately and that no Polish personnel present felt endangered by his actions. The judge emphasized that soldiers retain full military status and authority to use weapons when supporting Border Guard operations.
The ruling referenced the broader context of immigrant aggression against Polish forces at the border. Approximately two months after Karol S.’s incident, in June 2024, 21-year-old Polish soldier Mateusz Sitek died after being stabbed while attempting to prevent an illegal crossing.
The judge posed a pointed question about the consequences had the soldier not acted: instead of 11 migrants crossing, 35 would have made it across with only six officers standing against them.
Prosecutors have indicated they will appeal the verdict, meaning it is not yet final. The case represents one of several in which Polish soldiers have faced criminal prosecution for defending the border during the hybrid immigration warfare orchestrated by Belarus since 2021.
Polish patriots and opposition figures have welcomed the ruling as a victory for border security and common sense.
Belarus Weaponizes Migration Against Poland
Since 2021, Poland has confronted a systematic hybrid immigration crisis on its eastern frontier, deliberately orchestrated by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. Minsk has actively facilitated the arrival of tens of thousands of immigrants, predominantly from the Middle East, Asia and Africa, and deliberately pushed them toward the Polish border in an effort to destabilize Poland and the European Union’s external frontier.
Warsaw has responded by significantly strengthening border defenses, constructing a steel barrier approximately 186 kilometers long, deploying advanced electronic surveillance systems, and establishing a restricted buffer zone. Polish officials report that roughly 11,000 troops and border guards are now stationed along the eastern frontier to counter the ongoing threat.
With information from Brussels Signal
