Public prosecutors in Poland have charged an 18-year-old Pole who converted to Islam with participating in an organized group planning terrorist acts, including the use of explosives.
The man faces charges that could see him going to prison for 10 years after he was detained by the Internal Security Agency (ABW) in June.
His house was searched and evidence was found of a terrorist attack being planned on a police station in the town of Ząbkowice Śląskie.
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The Polish tabloid Super Express reported that the man initially planned to blow up the Polish parliament, but this project proved beyond his capabilities. Therefore, he ultimately chose the district police headquarters in Ząbkowice Śląskie.
According to the tabloid’s sources, the young man tried to construct a “shahid belt.” This is a belt or vest packed with explosives, worn by individuals intending to carry out a suicide bomb attack.
In 2022, the individual converted to Islam and modeled himself on figures such as Osama bin Laden and the Islamic State. He contacted members of the Islamic State and was collecting information and materials to construct a suicide belt, which he planned to detonate in a public building in Poland.
The Polish authorities have made clear that the man was not working in a terror cell located in Poland. He was receiving indoctrination and instructions from outside of the country, but he was acting alone within Poland.
