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Ìý²¹²Ô»å forces used brutal violence against asylum seekers and migrants at their shared border,ÌýAmnesty International said Monday.

This year'sÌýÌýhas seenÌýthousands of migrants, mainly from the Middle East, flock to the Belarusian border with Poland to .

The asylum seekers and migrantsÌýwere subject to "horrific torture orÌýother ill-treatment, inhumane conditions, extortion and other abuse", particularly at the hands of Belarusian forces,Ìýaccording to testimoniesÌýgatheredÌýby the human rights organisation.

Many migrants at the border were escorted toÌý"fenced off... collection sites" where they were trapped inÌýinhumane conditions for days or weeks, Amnesty said.ÌýBelarusian authorities allegedly acceptedÌýbribes from some migrants,Ìýallowing them to leave the fenced-off sites.

SomeÌýmigrants were laterÌýviolently forced into Poland,Ìýthen pushed back by Polish authorities, the report said.

"[The Belarusian soldiers]Ìýhad four dogs with them. They said they would let the dogs loose so if we didn't run fast, we would get bitten. The soldiers ran after us beating anyone who didn’t run fast enough with batons," oneÌýSyrian migrant told Amnesty.

"Some [Belarusian officials]Ìýhad iron finger boxing rings and steel-tipped boots. They kicked us while we were lying on [the] ground. My body was left black and blue," anÌýIraqi Kurdish migrantÌýsaid.

Many of the migrants were also deprived of food, water, and sanitation by the Belarusian authorities.

The majority of those who tried to cross the border more recentlyÌýsaid they also suffered violent treatment by Polish authorities,Ìýwho reportedly pepper-sprayed children and pushed adults into rivers.Ìý Ìý

The report is based on the testimonies of 75 migrants - from Iraq, Egypt, Lebanon, and Syria -Ìýwho travelled to BelarusÌýbetween July and November 2021.

The EU accusedÌýBelarus of luringÌýin the migrants andÌýÌýthe Polish border to manufacture theÌýcrisis andÌýdestabilise the EU, as revenge for sanctions against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's regime.

Belarus has denied the accusations against them.