Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, has condemned an explosion on a railway line used for deliveries to Ukraine as an “unprecedented act of sabotage” that could have resulted in disaster.
Public prosecutors confirmed on Monday evening that an investigation had been launched “regarding acts of sabotage of a terrorist nature […] committed on behalf of a foreign intelligence service against the Republic of Poland.”
The incident occurred on the Warsaw–Lublin line near the village of Mika, around 60 miles (97km) from the capital. No casualties were reported, but officials warned that the damage could have caused a derailment had a train been travelling at full speed.
“Unfortunately, there is no doubt that we are dealing with an act of sabotage. Fortunately, there was no tragedy, but the matter is nonetheless very serious,” Mr Tusk said after visiting the site. He described the attack as “an attempt to destabilise and destroy railway infrastructure, which could have led to a rail disaster.”
Authorities are also investigating a second incident over the weekend, near Puławy, where a train carrying 475 passengers was forced to stop after damage to overhead power lines and a metal brace was found on the tracks. Windows in one carriage were broken, though no injuries were reported.
Police said a regional train driver had spotted the damaged section of track on Sunday morning and managed to halt before reaching it. Dariusz Grajda, deputy chief executive of Polish State Railways, explained that a previous train had reported problems, allowing the driver to proceed cautiously and avoid an accident.
The incidents form part of a wider campaign of sabotage across Poland and other European countries, which officials have linked to Russian security services. Attacks in Poland have previously included fires and explosions at shopping centres and other sites. Investigators believe perpetrators are often recruited via the messaging app Telegram, with Ukrainians, Belarusians and Polish citizens carrying out one-off assignments.
Poland’s defence minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, said the army would inspect the remaining 120km (75 miles) of track between the site of the explosion and the Ukrainian border. Security services minister Tomasz Siemoniak stated that the likelihood of foreign intelligence involvement was “very high”, adding: “We are dealing with the services of a foreign state, and not a gang of scrap metal thieves.”
Interior minister Marcin Kierwiński described the incidents as “acts of sabotage unprecedented in Poland’s most recent history.”
A meeting of the government’s national security committee was scheduled for Tuesday morning, with military commanders, security chiefs and a representative of the president expected to attend.
