Polish riot police deployed as deposed court chief sets off crisis

Polish President Karol Nawrocki abruptly ended his trip to Senegal upon learning that police had stormed the Constitutional Tribunal in Poland and suspended its president, Bogdan Swieczkowski. The incidents outside the court involved the throwing of harmful objects at law enforcement. The tribunal announced Swieczkowski's suspension on its website. This political imbroglio has effectively crippled the Constitutional Tribunal.

President Nawrocki, a supporter of Poland's former nationalist party Law and Justice (PiS), had previously refused to swear in three judges nominated by parliament. Swieczkowski, a former deputy justice minister in the PiS administration, also obstructed the appointment of judges elected by the current parliamentary majority. Prime Minister Donald Tusk called for the restoration of the rule of law, stating that the government's duty is to resolve this situation, which has been plagued by lawlessness under the PiS regime.

Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek requested the removal of Swieczkowski's and his deputy's legal immunities for failing to carry out their duties by hindering the appointment of judges.

PiS politicians, including party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, accused Tusk's government of orchestrating a coup against the Constitutional Tribunal.