There are conflicting reports about whether the reported explosion was caused by Russian or Ukrainian rockets
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has called an emergency meeting of the government’s national security and defense committee amid reports of a deadly strike near the nation’s border with Ukraine.
Poland is understood to have scrambled fighter jets in the wake of the reports that two people had been killed in an “explosion” allegedly caused by a missile strike. The Polish military and prosecutors have arrived at the scene of the blast, Visegrad 24 reports.
Russia's Mash Telegram channel has published a photo of what it said is a fragment from an S-300 defence system missile. This Soviet-era equipment is used by Ukraine.
Meanwhile, other sources have pointed the finger at Russia. Moscow fired dozens of missiles at Ukraine earlier on Wednesday
Earlier, Polish media reported blasts had rocked the town of Przewodow, which is located in the Lublin region, not far from the border with Ukraine. A grain drier facility was reportedly hit, killing at least two people, local media said.
“The reasons for this incident are not known at the moment,” local fire service spokesman, Senior Captain Marcin Lebiedowicz, told Radio Lublin. He confirmed that there had been casualties and said his agency had received “a report of an explosion.”
The Polish government spokesman Piotr Mueller also called on the media and the public “not to publish unconfirmed information.”
AP reported, citing a “senior US intelligence official,” that Russian missiles had crossed into Poland, killing two people. Mueller did not comment on the reports, only referring to the incident as a “crisis situation.”
Neither Kiev nor Moscow have commented on the incident so far.
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Russia denies striking Poland
Moscow says the missile that struck Przewodow was not Russian
Russia has not carried out any strikes against targets near the Polish-Ukrainian border, the defense ministry in Moscow said on Tuesday, following reports of a missile striking the village of Przewodow and killing two civilians.
Some western media outlets and politicians have claimed that Russia is responsible for the incident. However, no evidence has been provided to support such assertions.
Missile fragments, photos of which were published by Polish media on the scene, “have nothing to do with Russian weapons,” the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Statements by Polish media and officials about the alleged ‘Russian’ missiles falling in the area of the village of Przewodow are “a deliberate provocation in order to escalate the situation,” the Russian military added.
Poland calls emergency security meeting after claim about missiles
Read more Poland calls emergency security meeting after claim about missiles
Poland has convened an emergency meeting of its national security council on Tuesday evening after reports that at least two civilians were killed when one or more missiles struck the village in the Lublin region, just across the border with Ukraine.
While AP reported that Russian missiles had crossed into Poland, citing an unnamed “senior US intelligence official,” the Pentagon declined to corroborate the claim.
“I can tell you that we don't have any information at this time to corroborate those reports and are looking into this further,” Air Force Brigadier General Patrick Ryder told reporters, when asked about the Przewodow incident.
The Polish government spokesman Piotr Mueller called on the media and the public “not to publish unconfirmed information.”
Officials from the Baltic states blamed Russia and claimed that Poland should invoke NATO’s Article 5 in retaliation. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky accused Russia of “terrorism” and said NATO needed to “act” against this “attack on collective security.”
