Two Turkish nationals have been detained in Germany / Poland accuses them of sabotaging a Starlink station on Russia’s orders

Two Turkish nationals have been detained in Germany in connection with the fire that broke out in September at a Starlink station in central Poland, authorities in Warsaw announced on Monday. Poland claims the incident was an act of sabotage ordered by a Russian intelligence service.

Polish Minister for Special Services Tomasz Siemoniak said there was no doubt about the involvement of Russian services and accused Moscow of increasingly using people associated with the criminal underworld for such operations. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski announced that the two suspects are to be charged in Poland with acts of sabotage.

The fire damaged the station’s power supply system and backup generator, and authorities considered that the target was to disrupt internet services, including those used by the Ukrainian army.

The case comes amid warnings about the intensification of hybrid operations attributed to Russia in Europe. Germany speaks of a “shadow war,” while Czech intelligence services warn of riskier actions against NATO states. Moscow rejects the accusations. Starlink is used by Ukraine for military communications and drone operations, and its subscriptions are paid for, in part, by Poland.