Man beaten in Poland after defending Ukrainian national from abuse

A 60-year-old man was beaten in the Polish city of Poznań after stepping in to defend a Ukrainian young man who was being verbally abused by three men.

Source: Polish news agency PAP, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The Polish man was travelling on a tram when he witnessed three men shouting abuse at a Ukrainian young man and decided to intervene.

The men then turned their aggression towards the 60-year-old man. The confrontation and assault took place at a tram stop.

Andrzej Borowiak, spokesperson for the Poznań Voivodeship Police Headquarters, told PAP that the man was suffering memory loss following the attack.

Police have questioned witnesses and secured CCTV footage from the tram stop where the incident occurred. Footage from the tram is expected to be released on Monday.

Local police are currently searching for those responsible for the assault.

Background:

• The number of hate crime reports involving attacks against Ukrainians received by the Polish police has increased by more than 30% over the past six months compared with the same period last year.
• Commenting on the recent attacks against Ukrainians in Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, Ukraine's Ambassador to Poland, expressed hope that this is "a temporary phenomenon".

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