GRODNO, 17 November (BelTA) – People received chemical burns of their eyes due to the irritant component in water shot by water cannons, BelTA learned from President's Aide – Inspector for Grodno Oblast Yuri Karayev on 17 November.
The official said: “Some refugees suffer from chemical burns of their eyes due to the tear irritant component the water cannons contained. Even some reporters were doused with it and said mucous membranes and eyes had been affected by the mixture in the water cannons.”
BelTA previously quoted Deputy Chief of the Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection and Ecology Office of the General Staff of Belarus' Armed Forces Igor Malyk as saying that Polish law enforcement personnel used special gear and ammunition containing toxic irritants against refugees at the Belarusian-Polish border on 16 November.
According to the source, Polish law enforcement personnel used ammunition containing toxic irritants against refugees, among whom there were women and children. The indiscriminate use of such chemicals can result in permanent damage to human health, damage to breathing organs and eyes. The chemicals represent the greatest danger for people with chronic diseases of these organs, Igor Malyk said.
In his words, the Belarusian Defense Ministry is alarmed by the fact that such chemicals were used in these conditions. “Moreover, the people were in the Belarusian territory. The Defense Ministry believes that such actions must be evaluated from the legal point of view,” the officer said.
