Polish prime minister says weekend rail line explosion near Warsaw was act of ‘sabotage’

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A railway line bringing passenger trains into Warsaw from southeastern Poland on Sunday was damaged by an explosion that authorities determined was an act of sabotage, the prime minister said.

“Unfortunately, the worst fears have been confirmed,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in a statement Monday. “An act of sabotage has occurred on the Warsaw-Lublin route (in the village of Mika). An explosion has destroyed the railway track.”

Two passengers and several staff members were on the train but no injuries were reported, officials said.

A train driver on the line between Warsaw and Lublin reported track irregularities around 7:40 a.m. Sunday. Further inspection determined there was damage to a section of track near the village of Mika, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) southeast of Warsaw, and another location on the route, officials said.

The perpetrators will be caught “regardless of who is behind them,” said Tusk, who called the incident an “unprecedented act of sabotage.”

Polish authorities have detained dozens of people over suspected sabotage and espionage since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.