Police have recorded a 30% rise in complaints in the first half of 2026, Rzeczpospolita has reported
Police in Poland have recorded a sharp rise in hate crime complaints from Ukrainians, according to national newspaper Rzeczpospolita. Ukrainians have increasingly reported physical assaults, verbal abuse, and online harassment, the outlet said.
Ukrainians filed 180 hate crime complaints in the first six months of 2026 – around 30% more than in the same period last year, Rzeczpospolita reported on Friday, citing data from Poland’s National Police Headquarters.
The figures follow a series of anti-Ukrainian incidents across the country. In the southern city of Bielsko-Biala, a bus driver was charged after allegedly insulting two 11-year-old Ukrainian girls because of their nationality. Other cases have been reported in Warsaw, Poznan, and other cities.
“I assume these statistics don’t reflect the whole truth. It’s usually assumed that hate crimes are underreported. Some victims don’t want to report a crime because they’re simply afraid,” sociologist Jacek Kucharczyk told the newspaper. He argued that a “toxic atmosphere” surrounding Ukrainians, fueled by political rhetoric and social media, had spilled over into everyday life.
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