Air raid sirens wake eastern Poland amid Russia's strikes in Ukraine

By Ilayda Cakirtekin

ISTANBUL (AA) - Air raid sirens woke people in eastern Poland early Thursday as Russia announced it had launched a strike on Ukraine overnight, according to Polish broadcaster TVP World.

The eastern Polish city of Lublin and the nearby town of Krasnystaw were awakened by warning sirens after the Government Centre for Security activated its alert system due to Russian strikes near the border.

The alarms lasted several minutes as the Operational Command of the Armed Forces deployed fighter jets and an airborne early warning aircraft and placed air defense and radar systems on heightened alert.

“These actions are of a preventive nature and are aimed at securing and protecting the airspace, particularly in areas adjacent to the threatened regions,” the military reportedly said.

The command later said one object came within about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) of the Polish border before changing direction, while another briefly entered Polish airspace, prompting the deployment of an F-16 fighter jet to identify it.

The object later disappeared from radar and is suspected to have crashed in an undeveloped area of the Lublin region, where search operations are underway.

Russian airstrikes killed eight people in various Ukrainian regions on Thursday, authorities said, as both countries traded accusations due to overnight attacks.

Late Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he received a report from Air Force Commander Anatolii Kryvonozhko and warned there is a “high probability” of a “massive attack” by Russia taking place overnight.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that it had launched a "massive" strike on Ukraine overnight, targeting "military airfields, military-industrial complex facilities, and military telecommunications and logistics centers" in various Ukrainian regions.