Trending Now - Russia Intensifies Targeted Assassination Efforts in Europe

WHO:

ABC News - Three Western intelligence officials from different countries.

AP News - Poland’s internal security service (ABW).

AP News - Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland.

WHAT:

ABC News - Russia's campaign of targeted killings has intensified since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

AP News - Poland's ABW reported that Russia is shifting from individual recruits to "professional" networks for sabotage and attacks across Europe.

AP News - More than 150 incidents linked to Moscow have been tracked by Western officials since the invasion of Ukraine.

AP News - Poland has conducted as many espionage investigations in the past two years as it did over the previous three decades, resulting in 62 arrests.

AP News - In 2024 and 2025, 69 espionage investigations were initiated, matching the total from 1991 to 2023.

AP News - In November 2025, Poland experienced an "unprecedented act of sabotage" involving explosions on a railway line used for deliveries to Ukraine, affecting two trains.

WHERE:

AP News - Poland.

AP News - The railway line in Poland used for deliveries to Ukraine.

WHEN:

AP News - The report by Poland's ABW was published on a Wednesday.

AP News - The espionage investigations from 2024 and 2025 were noted as matching the total from 1991 to 2023.

AP News - The "unprecedented act of sabotage" occurred in November 2025.

WHY:

AP News - The long-term goal of the Russian Federation is described as the disintegration of Euro-Atlantic structures and the destabilization of specific countries.

HOW:

AP News - Russia is moving towards more "professional" operations by tapping into organized crime networks and using individuals with experience in law enforcement, such as former soldiers and police officers.

AP News - Russian intelligence services are increasingly using methods typical of special forces, including reconnaissance and sabotage.

(UPDATED May 7, 2026 09:50 UTC)

Poland's internal security service, known as ABW, has reported a significant escalation in Russia's campaign of targeted killings since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with over 150 incidents linked to Moscow tracked by Western officials. The report highlights a troubling shift in Russia's tactics, moving from individual recruits to more organized, professional networks for sabotage and attacks across Europe, including an unprecedented act of sabotage on a railway line in November 2025 that disrupted deliveries to Ukraine. In response to these threats, Poland has ramped up its espionage efforts, conducting as many investigations in the past two years as it did in the previous three decades, resulting in 62 arrests.