Tusk called a special meeting of ministers and security chiefs on Sunday. “When it comes to children’s safety, there is no room for compromise, whether political, organisational or educational”, he said. He added that the response must be “a permanent, well-organised effort”, not a reaction to a single incident.
About 10,000 officers are guarding schools on Sunday. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said about 40,000 officers had been deployed over the past three days, carrying out nearly 65,000 checks and detaining 117 people, mostly aged 13 to 19. Checks will continue “for as long as necessary”, he said.
Officials said they had found no link between the last four incidents. Tusk said no large organised group was behind them. He described the behaviour as often spontaneous and driven by online activity, part of what he called “a very grim fashion for violence”. He said some young people were seeking out Nazi content about wartime violence, and that violence was increasingly visible in popular games.
Kierwiński said services were watching three groups: people fascinated by violence and fascist ideology, people drawing “inspiration” from video games, and people stirred up by the publicity around the attacks.
Tusk urged against opening a debate on easier access to firearms, saying a mix of fascination with violence and free access to weapons had caused mass tragedies elsewhere. He ruled out policing schools or imposing radical internet censorship, but said cooperation between police, teachers and parents could make a big difference.
He also warned that even pranks carry risks. “For 99 per cent these are just jokes”, he said, but someone may draw the worst conclusions and commit violence.
Col. Małgorzata Żochowska of the Internal Security Agency said analysis found no sign of a “state actor” behind the incidents, though rising social tension could be exploited to destabilise the country.
Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said online monitoring teams had been on alert since Thursday and were passing content to police. Accounts glorifying the perpetrator of Thursday’s attack have been blocked. A law passed Thursday would allow authorities to block content including live-streamed crises, threats and promotion of suicide. A Senate committee will consider it on Tuesday, and the Senate is expected to vote this week.
Fifty-nine schools suspended lessons on Friday, 45 of them in the Mazovia region, Deputy Education Minister Paulina Piechna-Więckiewicz said. Schools will receive guidance on responding to an attack on Monday.
A helpline for adults worried about children’s safety, 800 100 100, has extended its hours for two weeks. Children can call 116 111 around the clock.
(jh)
Source: PAP