Polish PM says railway track blast was ‘unprecedented act of sabotage’

He said an investigation was under way and added: “We will catch the perpetrators, regardless of who their backers are.”

Reuters said the explosion follows incidents of arson, sabotage and cyberattacks in Poland and other European countries during the war in Ukraine. Polish authorities have earlier blamed Russia for attempts to destabilise the country. Russia has denied involvement.

Local police told Reuters that a train driver reported irregularities on the track on Sunday morning, but authorities could not immediately confirm it was sabotage.

In a video message cited by Reuters, Tusk said the route is also used to transport weapons to Ukraine. “Fortunately, no tragedy occurred, but the legal implications are very serious,” he said.

Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz told Reuters the army was checking about 120 km of track leading towards the Ukrainian border.

Tusk visited the site and said the line is “crucially important for delivering aid to Ukraine”. AP said officials were unsure whether the explosion happened late Saturday or early Sunday. Two passengers and several staff were on the train but no one was hurt.

Yet another incident occurred on Sunday in which a second train stopped after the overhead electric cables were damaged. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski said the case was under investigation and that 475 passengers were on board without injuries.

Polish authorities have detained several people over suspected sabotage and spying since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, AP said.

Deputy Interior Minister Maciej Duszczyk told AP that people should avoid drawing early conclusions about who carried out the attack, saying “Russia isn’t so powerful that every arson, every situation of this kind, is provoked by Russia”. He added that the possibility “cannot be ruled out or ignored”.

Tusk said Poland would “catch the perpetrators, whoever they are”, AP reported.