Polish soldiers take part in a military parade in Warsaw on Polish Army Day on Aug 15, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
WARSAW/KYIV - Poland's armed forces said that a suspected Russian missile from the direction of the border with Ukraine entered the country's airspace on Friday morning and left after less than three minutes.
The Armed Forces General Command said on social media that the incident occurred at 7:12 am (0612 GMT) near the village of Horodlo in the eastern Lubelskie Voivodeship. Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces, said the missile traveled about 40 km into Polish airspace, the Polish Press Agency reported.
In a statement on social media platform X, the General Staff of the Armed Forces said the flight path of the cruise missile was tracked by Poland's radar systems. Air defense systems stayed alerted. Land forces and air forces, including one F-16 aircraft, were all deployed to trace the object's flight trajectory.
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There is no reason for concern among residents ... Conclusions are being drawn; the procedures have worked. Detailed information will be provided by the army.
Andrzej Duda, Polish President
Jens Stoltenberg, secretary-general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said on social media that he has contacted Polish President Andrzej Duda over the incident, saying that "NATO stands in solidarity with our valued ally, is monitoring the situation."
Duda has also convened a National Security Bureau meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, and military commanders, the presidential office said.
"There is no reason for concern among residents," it said. "Conclusions are being drawn; the procedures have worked. Detailed information will be provided by the army."
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Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on social media that he had discussed the incident with President Duda shortly after noon on Friday.
There was no comment from the Russian authorities yet.
This photo taken on Dec 29, 2023 shows a damaged warehouse due to an airstike by Russia after being extinguished by firefighters in the center of Kyiv, Ukraine. (PHOTO / AFP)
'Largest' airstrike on Ukraine
Meanwhile, the death toll from the largest air attack on Ukraine on Firday since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has risen to 30, with more than 160 people injured, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said that Russia launched a record 158 drones and missiles against Ukraine, and 115 of them were intercepted
At least 53 people have been rescued from the debris of the buildings that were damaged in the attack, Klymenko said in a post on Telegram.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said that Russia launched a record 158 drones and missiles against Ukraine, and 115 of them were intercepted.
Ukraine's critical infrastructure, and industrial and military facilities were attacked during the air strike, it said.
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In Kyiv, nine people were confirmed dead and 28 others wounded, said Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Most casualties occurred when a warehouse in the Shevchenkivskiy district caught fire after being hit by fragments of an intercepted missile.
Heavy casualties were also reported in the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine, southern cities of Odesa and Zaporizhzhia, and the eastern city of Kharkiv.
