On July 21, a Facebook user shared a video that, according to their claim, shows a confrontation between a German migrant woman and a Polish border guard. According to the post’s description, the Polish border guards did not allow the German woman to enter the country. In the video, a woman speaking German is arguing with a uniformed man, after which she is told the phrase “Hitler kaputt.”
The claim that the video shows a German woman confronting a Polish border guard over being denied entry has also been shared by Russian-speaking Facebook users (1;2). A similar description of the video appears on a Russian Telegram channel as well.
The claim that the video depicts a confrontation between a German migrant and a Polish border guard is false. The man referred to as a border guard is actually a member of a nationalist movement formed for border protection. There is also no evidence supporting the claim that the woman is a German migrant. According to available information, she was arguing with a volunteer from the movement over the denial of entry to another migrant.
The man confronted by the German-speaking woman is a member of the movement Ruch Obrony Granic (ROG). ROG is a movement founded by Polish far-right nationalist politician and activist Robert Bąkiewicz. Its official aim is “to protect Poland from mass migration and related threats.” Members of the movement claim they are fighting illegal migration and often carry banners with anti-immigration slogans. They frequently post information about their activities on their X account.
Recently, anti-migrant movements have intensified in Poland, and protests have taken place. These events have been covered by both local and European outlets (1;2;3). German authorities announced that, under the Dublin Regulation, they planned to return thousands of asylum seekers who, according to their information, entered Germany from Poland. In response, Poland decided to impose border controls with Germany and Slovenia. The video shows the Słubice Bridge, which is located on the Germany–Poland border.
Members of the nationalist movement were patrolling the area near the bridge, acting as self-declared border enforcers and assuming duties of the official border police. Prime Minister Donald Tusk also commented on such actions at the beginning of July, calling for their cessation and describing their behavior as illegal and destructive.
Members of the ROG movement can be distinguished from actual border police. In the video, the man wears a jacket bearing the logo of the ROG organization.
Myth Detector contacted the Polish Border Guard. According to the agency, based on the video shared, the man shown is a member of the ROG movement founded by Robert Bąkiewicz. They also sent a link confirming that the official uniforms of the Polish Border Guard differ from the clothing seen in the video.
The information that the man is a representative of ROG is also confirmed by another organization founded by Bąkiewicz, called ROTY. Like ROG, Roty is an anti-immigration group. In their statement, they identified the volunteer by name – Andrzej Piwnicki. The video was also posted on the Facebook page of the Polish nationalist party Suwerenna Polska, describing it as an attack on an ROG representative.
In addition, a Georgian-language Facebook user claimed that the woman in the confrontation was a German migrant. However, open sources do not confirm this. According to information shared by people affiliated with the organization and materials published on the topic, the woman is German and was arguing with the “border guard” over the denial of entry to another migrant. Presumably, this refers to a third person visible in the video, whose images have also circulated.
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