Flashbang grenade injures Polish soldier in Belarus border migrant clash

A Polish soldier was hospitalised Monday evening after a flashbang grenade accidentally exploded during a confrontation with more than 40 migrants attempting to cross illegally from Belarus, military officials said.

The incident occurred around 8 pm near Czeremcha, a border village, when migrants threw stones at Polish forces from the Podlasie Task Force.

A soldier sustained injuries to his left arm when the flashbang grenade he was deploying as a "coercive measure" against "a group of aggressive migrants" exploded prematurely, Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said.

The soldier received first aid at the scene before being transported to a hospital in Bialystok. His condition was described as stable and conscious throughout, with injuries classified as non-life-threatening.

The Polish military has opened an investigation into the incident.

Poland has faced a migration crisis at its Belarus border since 2021, with Warsaw accusing Minsk of using thousands of migrants from Africa and the Middle East in a hybrid warfare operation, luring them with false promises of EU access.

According to the Polish government, the hybrid war was initially launched in retaliation for EU sanctions against the regime of Aliaksandr Lukashenka, with tensions escalating further since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.

Flashbang grenades are standard army equipment used as coercion tools by Polish forces patrolling the border area, according to the military.