Two individuals from Belarus have cut down camera poles observing the border from the Lithuanian side.
The incident occurred on Tuesday in the Čepkeliai Marsh, a border section covered by the Kabeliai Frontier Station.
“They cut the poles down after crossing the border illegally, the poles fell to the ground and the persons fled,” Giedrius Mišutis, spokesman for the State Border Guard Service (VSAT), told BNS. “Now the restoration work is underway, there are no border ‘holes’, the stretch is being monitored, the cameras are working, control is being ensured by other means.”
According to Mišutis, the two individuals were not wearing uniforms. They crossed into Lithuania in Varėna District near the Čepkeliai Marsh, where, due to natural conditions, there is no fence or any other physical barrier.
“The two individuals targeted the two cameras, had battery-powered cutting tools and cut down the two poles holding surveillance cameras that were covering the entire perimeter,” Mišutis said, adding that this is a third such case this year. He does not rule out there might more of such incidents.
Last year, 467 attempts to physically damage both the surveillance systems and the barrier were reported, and there have been over 50 this year.
A pre-trial investigation has been opened into illegal crossing of the state border and destruction or damage to property.
Currently, 550 kilometres of the Lithuanian-Belarusan border is reinforced with a fence and razor wire.
Lithuania has a 679-km border with Belarus, with more than 100 km running along rivers and lakes.
Lithuania decided to build the fence after a migrant crisis in 2021, which Vilnius blamed on the Minsk government, calling it a hybrid attack.
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