A Syrian family – parents with three kids and their granddad – are on a flight from Istanbul to Minsk. Next to them sits Leila, a bright and friendly teacher from Afghanistan. The Belarusian president Lukashenko has offered refugees safe passage to the border with the European Union. Before landing, they’re given red roses as a gesture of welcome. They take a taxi to near the border and sneak through the wire. When Leila’s phone confirms they’re in Poland, she’s jubilant.

It’s all too good to be true. Polish soldiers find them. They give them water, and they seem friendly. They offer transport to a centre to register their asylum claims, but instead take them back to the border wire and force them into Belarus. And before long, Belarusian troops force them back again.