Poland finds secret border tunnel, detains 130 migrants including citizens of Afghanistan

Poland says more than 180 migrants crossed from Belarus through a secret tunnel, with authorities detaining 130 people including Afghanistan nationals, highlighting border security tensions.

Poland has intensified security measures along its eastern border after authorities uncovered a hidden tunnel used by migrants to cross from Belarus into European Union territory, officials said.

Poland’s border guard reported that more than 180 migrants entered the country through the tunnel in a forested area near the Belarusian border. At least 130 people were detained, most of them citizens of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In a statement issued on Friday, the border guard said it was searching for at least 50 migrants who fled after crossing into Poland. Nationals of India, Nepal and Bangladesh were also among those believed to have used the underground route.

Officials said the tunnel’s entrance was located about 50 metres inside Belarus, with the exit roughly 10 metres beyond Poland’s border barrier. Footage released by authorities showed the tunnel reinforced with wooden beams and metal supports, standing about 1.5 metres high.

This is the fourth such tunnel discovered this year in the Podlaskie region, according to border officials. A 69-year-old Polish man and a 49-year-old Lithuanian national were arrested on suspicion of aiding migrant smuggling networks.

Poland said digital monitoring systems were used to calculate the number of migrants who passed through the tunnel, while police and army units continued searches in nearby forested areas.

Since 2021, Poland has accused Belarus and its ally Russia of facilitating irregular migration to destabilise the European Union, allegations repeatedly denied by both Minsk and Moscow.

In response, Warsaw has significantly tightened border controls, including a costly project launched in 2022 to fence about 180 kilometres of the frontier with Belarus, highlighting ongoing tensions over migration and security on the EU’s eastern edge.

This comes amid Afghanistan continuing to face a severe humanitarian crisis, marked by widespread poverty, food insecurity, and shrinking access to basic services, according to the United Nations and international aid agencies.

Strict restrictions on education, especially for women and girls, combined with high unemployment and limited economic opportunities, have driven many citizens of Afghanistan to seek migration despite dangerous routes.

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