Tusk and defence minister face threat inquiry in Poland
Polish security agencies met urgently over a possible attack against Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. Information first received by the service protecting senior officials was passed to police. Officials described the warning as serious; potential perpetrators and a method have not been publicly identified. Police and intelligence agencies continue to verify the information.
Geopolitics··Evening
Security agencies assess threats against two senior officials
Polish security agencies gathered urgently on Sunday after receiving information about a possible attack against Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. Police, the Internal Security Agency and the State Protection Service, responsible for protecting senior officials, met to assess the warning. Spokesman Jacek Dobrzyński announced in the morning that police had information concerning a threat to the two politicians.[1], [2]
Interior ministry spokeswoman Karolina Gałecka said the State Protection Service had first received the information. After an initial examination, the service passed its information to police. Investigators are using their own sources and channels to clarify how plausible it is that the threat could be carried out. Dobrzyński said the meeting agreed further action but did not disclose the measures adopted.[1]
Officials describe the warning as more serious than earlier threats
Dobrzyński described the warning as serious and credible and said agencies judged the likelihood of the threats being carried out to be high. That assessment belongs to the security authorities. The possible attack’s location, method and perpetrators have not been publicly disclosed. The spokesman said further details could follow investigation by police and security agencies. Responding to criticism of the disclosure, he stressed that the warning concerned the lives and security of two senior state officials.[1], [2]
Government spokesman Adam Szłapka told TVN that officials continually receive warnings about threats, but considered this one more worrying than earlier notifications. He said part of the information arrived by email and that the concern went beyond an email alone. Security agencies are continuing their work on the case.[1]
An unnamed official described as close to the prime minister told Gazeta Wyborcza that right-wing extremists were behind the threat and that the potential perpetrators were Polish. Another unnamed source within intelligence services told the newspaper that the warning contained addresses associated with Tusk and Kosiniak-Kamysz. Those allegations have not been officially confirmed; security agencies have not publicly identified a perpetrator.[1]
September arrests have no established link to the new inquiry
In September, a man was detained in the Polish city of Przemyśl after posting a social-media video threatening Tusk. Another man was arrested in Oława for criminal threats against the prime minister online. No connection has been established between those incidents and the warning announced on Sunday. Dobrzyński also said the number of threats reaching police and other agencies had increased over months and years, with some eventually proving to be foolish jokes. He separately stressed the seriousness of the current case.[1], [2]
