Poland completes Belarus border wall to keep migrants out

By VANESSA GERA and KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
Associated Press

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A year after migrants started crossing into the European Union, authorities say a new steel wall along Poland’s border with Belarus has been finished. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki marked its completion with a visit to the border area on Thursday. The wall is intended to keep out migrants from the Middle East and Africa. Polish authorities say they plan Friday to lift a state of emergency along the Belarus-Poland border that kept journalists and human rights workers out of an area where at least 20 migrants died. The Polish government characterizes the wall as part of the fight against Russia; human rights defenders see a double standard since Poland has welcomed Ukrainian refugees.