Attacks on Ukrainians in Poland up 30% due to ethnic motives

According to Polish police, 180 crimes against Ukrainians motivated by ethnicity were recorded in the first half of 2026 — 30% more than the year before.

This was reported by the newspaper Politico.

Prosecutors say that more than 80% of hate crime cases referred to court between February and June involved Ukrainians.

According to CBOS polls, the share of Poles with a positive attitude toward Ukrainians fell from 51% in 2023 to 29% in January 2026. At the same time, the share of negative attitudes increased. Respondents cited historical disputes — including those surrounding the Volhynia tragedy and the UPA — as well as social benefits for Ukrainians as the main reasons.

The anti-Ukrainian theme is being used with increasing frequency ahead of the 2027 parliamentary elections. Representatives of right-wing parties are demanding that aid to Kyiv be curtailed. Przemysław Czarnek, the Law and Justice party’s candidate for prime minister, stated:

“Military aid to Ukraine must be suspended until that country changes its historical policy.”

Among specific incidents was one in Radom, where a drunk 34-year-old man accosted three 20-year-old Ukrainians, questioning them about their origins and the Volhynia massacre. Seven more men then joined him, and together they beat the Ukrainians.

In Bydgoszcz, a man and a woman attacked a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy and his 14-year-old sister after hearing the children speaking Ukrainian to each other.