Riot police guard Poland's top court in power struggle
The suspension of the Constitutional Tribunal's president sparked protests in Warsaw and led President Karol Nawrocki to cut short a trip abroad.
Developing story. Details may change as more information is confirmed.
Riot police were deployed at Poland's Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw on Friday after the court's president was suspended, sharply escalating a long-running fight over who controls the country's top constitutional court.
The court's president, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy were suspended in a move announced by Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, one of several judges elected by parliament whom President Karol Nawrocki has refused to swear in. She was placed in temporary charge of the court. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said he had asked for both men to be stripped of their immunity so they could face criminal charges for blocking other judges from working.
Supporters of the right-wing opposition Law and Justice party (PiS), which appointed most of the court's current judges while in power from 2015 to 2023, protested outside. Police said they detained three people after some broke through a fence and others threw objects at officers. The court's own social media account called the suspension a coup. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said restoring the rule of law was his government's duty.
Nawrocki, who is allied with PiS, turned his plane around while flying to Senegal and returned to Warsaw, where he met the suspended court leaders and went to the tribunal. European courts have previously ruled that the tribunal, as currently composed, is not an independent court. This is a developing story.
This summary is original reporting by tehworldnews, written after checking the facts against several major international news outlets and official statements.