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Poland mayor assassination: Three arrested after demand for more killings after deadly attack

Poland is mourning Gdansk’s liberal mayor Pawel Adamowicz

Jon Stone
Europe correspondent
Tuesday 15 January 2019 12:11 EST
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Mayor of Gdansk stabbed on stage during charity event

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Three people have been arrested in Poland after calling for more killings in light of the assassination of the mayor of Gdansk.

The country’s interior ministry says police made the arrests on Monday after Pawel Adamowicz was stabbed and killed.

Mr Adamowicz, a popular liberal figure who had been elected for six terms, was murdered while on stage during a charity event.

Joachim Brudzinski, Poland’s interior minister, described those arrested as “unbalanced” and said they were internet trolls. He did not elaborate on whose murder the people were calling for.

Flags flew at half-mast across Poland, and mourners attended public vigils, signed condolence books and laid tributes, including at the spot the politician was stabbed in Gdansk’s old town.

Mateusz Morawiecki, the country’s prime minister, and his cabinet reportedly stood for a moment of silence before their weekly meeting.

Mr Adamowicz was an independent mayor, who was previously a member of the centre-right Civic Platform party. Civic Platform is the main opposition to the right-wing populist governing party Law and Justice.

The mayor’s assailant has been identified by Polish authorities as 27-year-old Stefan W from Gdansk. He left prison in December, where he served over five years for bank robberies.

The killing has sparked political controversy in Poland, with some blaming the governing Law and Justice party for the killing because of its history of using polarising rhetoric, including against the victim.

Others have pointed to claims Stefan W had mental health problems and a criminal record.

Public broadcaster TVP caused controversy on Monday after it ran a report on its main evening news programme that selectively showed clips of Civic Platform politicians using harsh language against their Law and Justice opponents.

Critics noted that the report omitted many examples of similar aggressive language by Law and Justice officials.

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