Polish President Andrzej Duda has said his country is turning to „all possible” international bodies as it presses for the release of two members of an association of Poles in Belarus.
A senior member of the association, was detained by police in a Belarusian city close to the Polish border, on Thursday morning.
Meanwhile, the head of the Association was detained by police in the same city on Tuesday afternoon. A day later, she was sentenced to 15 days of confinement for organizing an „illegal mass event.” Polish media reported that the event in question was a traditional annual fair held by her association.
Duda said on Thursday it was „unprecedented” that the Belarusian authorities were „arresting representatives of legally operating Polish organisations.”
Source – Polskie Radio
Poland on Thursday announced a swathe of new COVID restrictions as officials reported another record daily rise in infections and the health minister warned the country was „in a crisis situation.”
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, meanwhile, said Poland was experiencing its most difficult moment in the pandemic, with over 70 percent of hospital beds with ventilators occupied. He added that Poland’s public health service was approaching the limits of its capacity to cope.
Under new rules that will kick in for two weeks from Saturday, large retail outlets and churches will be able to admit fewer people, hairdressers and beauty parlours will be shut, while kindergartens will be closed to children apart from those of medics, soldiers, police and firefighters. Large furniture and building supply stores will be closed, while sports facilities will be open only to professional athletes.
Source – Polskie Radio
Poland’s national football team opened its 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign with a 3-3 away draw with Hungary in Budapest on Thursday.
The Poles, captained by Lewandowski, had been looking for a convincing win, but had to settle for a hard-fought tie under their new Portuguese manager Paulo Sousa. The match was played without spectators amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Ahead of the game, Poland’s Leeds midfielder Mateusz Klich tested positive for the coronavirus and was left out of the squad.
Poland are ranked 19th worldwide by football’s governing body FIFA, while Hungary are No. 40 in the FIFA table. The Polish team will now take on Andorra in its next World Cup qualifying fixture on home turf in Warsaw on Sunday.
Source – Polskie Radio
A bridge in Gdynia Karwiny which has been partially collapsed for the last 5 years will finally be repaired in the coming months.
The bridge was partially destroyed in July 2016 during a storm event that caused a landslip around the bridge leading to its partial collapse.
A spokesman for Gdynia council said that the scope of the works was much greater than a typical repair which explained the lengthy delay in the remedial works being scheduled. The repairs will last for 15 weeks at a cost of PLN 2 million.
Source – Radio Gdańsk
Weather
Today will be a sunny day with scattered clouds in a gentle breeze with highs of a pleasant 13 degree centigrade (55 degrees Fahrenheit) during the day, dropping to -4 degrees overnight. Saturday turn cloudy with chances of showers in a moderate breeze and temperatures reaching 11 degrees during the day and 3 degrees overnight.
MC/am
