{"id":2519,"date":"2021-11-09T16:14:34","date_gmt":"2021-11-09T16:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news25.org\/?p=2519"},"modified":"2021-11-09T16:14:37","modified_gmt":"2021-11-09T16:14:37","slug":"riot-police-sent-in-amid-standoff-at-poland-belarus-border","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.news25.org\/riot-police-sent-in-amid-standoff-at-poland-belarus-border\/","title":{"rendered":"Riot police sent in amid standoff at Poland-Belarus border"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Polish riot police reinforced Poland\u2019s eastern border on Tuesday, a day after hundreds of migrants tried to storm across the razor-wire border fence from Belarus. Thousands of migrants still remained on the Belarussian side and Polish authorities feared the tense standoff could escalate.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Polish authorities reported that the situation on the border \u2014 which is also the eastern border for the 27-nation European Union and NATO \u2014 was calm overnight and Tuesday morning, but after Monday\u2019s border scrum they said they were bracing for any possibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poland\u2019s Defense Ministry said Tuesday that a large group of Belarusian forces was moving toward the migrants, who were camping out on the border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Major Katarzyna Zdanowicz, from the region\u2019s border guards, estimated 3,000-4,000 migrants were along the border, including about 800 in the vicinity of the large makeshift migrant camp. She also said there was a greater concentration of Belarusian services on the border to \u201ccontrol, steer and direct these people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the Polish assessment comes from aerial observations, and alleged that Belarus authorities were taking journalists to the border area to present the situation to the people of Belarus as propaganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was no way to independently verify what was happening because journalists have limited ability to operate in Belarus and a state of emergency in Poland kept reporters and others out of the border area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n