Poland has decided
to build a fence along its border at Belarus to keep migrants coming in from
Afghanistan and Iraq at bay. The announcement was made by the Polish defence
minister on Monday. The minister said that the wall is meant to halt the flow
of migrants the European Union says is being driven by Belarusian President
Alexander Lukashenko in retaliation for EU sanctions, according to a Reuters
report.

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Several European
Union nations have reported a sharp uptick in inflow of migrants from Iraq and
Afghanistan. The EU says that the flow is Alexander Lukashenko’s way of waging “hybrid
warfare” with migrants to put pressure on the block which has imposed severe
sanctions on Belarus.

Polish Defence
Minister Mariusz Blaszczack posted on Twitter: “A new 2.5-metre-high solid
fence will be built on the border with Belarus…More soldiers will be involved
in helping the Border Guard”.

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The decision by
the Polish government has come under sharp criticism from human rights groups
who say that Poland is treating stranded migrants in an inhumane way.

The Polish Human
Rights Ombudsman said that the Border Guard has violated the Geneva Convention
by not accepting verbal declarations of some of the migrants who sought
international protection in Poland.

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But the Polish
government says that allowing more migrants to enter into Polish territory will
encourage more illegal migration and will also “play into Lukashenko’s hands”.

Meanwhile,
Lithuania too said that it would complete a 508-km fence on its border by
September next year. Nations part of the European Union are worried of a
massive migrant influx from Afghanistan after the Taliban took over control in
the war-ravaged country.

Desperate scenes
of people clinging to an aircraft from the Kabul airport in Afghanistan has
deepened Europe’s anxiety over a potential refugee crisis. Even Germany, which
has accommodated the highest number of Syrian refugees in the West, doesn’t
seem keen on accepting migrants from Afghanistan.