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Air raid alerts in parts of Ukraine amid Russian drone incursions in Poland
The earlier air raid alerts' map showed sirens sounding across almost all of Ukraine, including Kyiv, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions.
After Russian drones reportedly crossed into Poland's airspace and posed a threat to the city of Zamosc, Ukraine sounded air raid sirens across the country, including in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Luhansk and the Donetsk region.
An air raid map of Ukraine showed red and pink air raid alerts almost all over the country, which has been in conflict with Russia since February 2022. Follow Poland-Russia conflict live updates
The regions of Poltava, Sumy, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Volyn, and Zaporizhzhia were all under air raid alert.
Later, the map displayed active air raid alerts for Luhansk, Poltava, Chernihiv, and Volyn regions and for the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
Poland's military command on Wednesday said that it deployed its own and NATO air defences to shoot down drones after a Russian air attack on western Ukraine. This is the first time that the country has engaged its assets in the Ukraine war.
It said that the Polish airspace was consistently being violated by "drone-type objects" during the Russian attack across the border in Ukraine.
"An operation is underway aimed at identifying and neutralising these objects ... weapons have been used, and service personnel are carrying out actions to locate the downed objects," the military command said in a statement.
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The Polish military urged people to stay at home as the operation was still underway, saying that the regions of Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lublin were at most risk.
"The Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces is monitoring the situation, and subordinate forces and units remain on full readiness for immediate response," it added.
Defence minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said they are in "constant contact with NATO command".
Poland also reportedly closed four airports, including the main Chopin Airport in Warsaw. However, there was no official confirmation from Polish authorities in this regard.
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Ukraine's air force had earlier reported that Russian drones entered Poland's airspace. However, it subsequently removed the statement from the Telegram messaging app.
Later, US's Democratic Senator Dick Durbin said the repeated violations of a NATO airspace by Russian drones were a sign that "Vladimir Putin is testing our resolve to protect Poland and the Baltic nations."
"After the carnage Putin continues to visit on Ukraine, these incursions cannot be ignored," he said on X.
Republican representative Joe Wilson also called out Russia's "attack" and termed it an "act of war".
Poland has been on high alert for objects entering its airspace since a stray Ukrainian missile struck a village in the southern part of the country in 2022, resulting in the deaths of two people.
Meanwhile, a Russian glide bomb struck a village in eastern Ukraine, killing at least 24 people and injuring 19 others, the Ukraine Emergency Service said.
The bomb hit the Yarova village in the Donetsk region at around 11 am (local time) on Tuesday.
According to the United Nations, more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians have lost their lives in the three-year war with Russia. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack "frankly brutal".
“The world should not remain silent,” he said, adding that "the world should not remain inactive. The United States needs a reaction. Europe needs a reaction. The G20 needs a reaction. Strong action is needed so that Russia stops bringing death.”
