Polish police have arrested several young people over threats linked to school attacks as authorities intensify security measures following two stabbing incidents and online rumours of a so called “Bloody Friday”.
Police said at least 10 people had been detained by Friday morning, mainly for making threats online, with further arrests reported as investigations continued. Officers have been deployed to about 10,000 schools nationwide.
Authorities said they had found no evidence of a coordinated online challenge behind the attacks, despite widespread speculation on social media.
Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski warned that misinformation could increase public anxiety and potentially encourage copycat incidents, although officials had not identified evidence of a nationwide plot.
Among those detained were a 13 year old Warsaw student who allegedly threatened classmates while sharing a photograph of a knife, a 14 year old found on school grounds with a knife and firecrackers, and two 15 year olds accused of posting a video containing death threats.
The security response follows two attacks in northeastern Poland. On Thursday, a 15 year old former pupil allegedly killed a school employee and injured two others at a primary school in Leszczydol Nowiny.
A day earlier, a 19 year old injured 10 people, including himself, in a stabbing at a school in Ostroleka.
Police are also investigating social media material reportedly linked to Thursday’s attacker. Poland’s Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime said it was aware of content associated with a TikTok account allegedly belonging to the suspect and was cooperating with the platform.
Authorities have urged the public to avoid spreading unverified information while investigations continue.
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