Poland activates air defences as Russia strikes eastern Ukraine
Russia launched massive drone strikes on eastern Ukraine on Thursday, September 24, prompting Poland to activate its ground-based air defences for the third time in two days, escalating fears of a wider conflict with NATO. Poland's Operational Command confirmed the activation, citing Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory. This followed a similar deployment 24 hours earlier after drones killed at least nine people in Kyiv and Dnipro, and a Russian Mi-8 helicopter briefly violated Polish airspace near Braniewo, prompting fighter jets to scramble. Unconfirmed reports also indicated an unidentified drone entered Romanian airspace from Ukraine before disappearing from radar. Poland described the incidents as Russia testing its air defence readiness, with forces maintaining round-the-clock observation.