News Feed

Polish Embassy in Kyiv struck in Russia's large-scale overnight attack

2 min read
Polish Embassy in Kyiv struck in Russia's large-scale overnight attack
Illustrative image: This photograph, taken on Jan. 8, 2025, shows employees of the Consulate General of Poland removing the Polish national flag and the flag of the European Union from the Consulate General of Poland in Saint Petersburg. (Olga Maltseva / AFP via Getty Images)

Editor's note: Read more of our reporting on Russia's large-scale overnight attack on Ukraine here.

Russia's large-scale overnight attack on Kyiv on Sept. 28 struck the Polish Embassy in the capital, a spokesperson for Poland's foreign ministry said.

Spokesperson Pawel Wronski told Polish outlet RMF24 that "a missile element or a small-caliber rocket" fell on the roof of the embassy, piercing through the ceiling. The debris landed in the kitchen of the embassy with Wronski adding that the damage was "not large," with no casualties reported.

Russia launched almost 500 drones and over 40 missiles, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, killing at least four people and injuring over 70 primarily in Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia. At least 36 people were injured in Kyiv and the surrounding region, with all four casualties recorded within the capital.

The incident comes amid growing tension between NATO countries and Russia stemming from Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Over the past month, Russian drones have violated Polish, Romanian, and possibly Danish airspace.

On Sept. 19, Estonia accused Russia of violating its airspace with three MiG-31 fighter jets, which remained in Estonian airspace for 12 minutes, triggering NATP's Article 4. While on Sept. 26, Hungarian fighter jets intercepted five Russian aircraft over the Baltic Sea.

Poland scrambled fighter jets in response to the mass attack as it has repeatedly done so to protect its own airspace. During a mass attack on Sept. 10, Poland shot down multiple Russian drones that crossed the border and breached Polish airspace.

Foreign embassies have previously been damaged in large-scale attacks on the capital. The embassies of Albania, Argentina, Palestine, North Macedonia, Portugal, and Montenegro were all damaged in December 2024 when a missile struck a building housing the embassies.

As Russia tests NATO, calls to ‘close Ukraine’s skies’ have returned — here’s what that means
Calls to “close the skies” over Ukraine — the rallying cry of pro-Ukraine demonstrations in early 2022 — are resurfacing after a wave of Russian airspace violations against NATO members. These incursions have put European countries on edge and raised questions about the alliance’s ability to counter Russian drones and aircraft. Within days, NATO launched the Eastern Sentry mission, and talk of closing the skies over Ukraine returned to the agenda. “NATO is a defensive bloc, so any steps it tak
Article image
Avatar
Dmytro Basmat

Senior News Editor

Dmytro Basmat is a senior news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.

Read more
News Feed

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pawel Wronski told Polish outlet RMF24 that "a missile element or a small-caliber rocket" fell on the roof of the embassy, piercing through the ceiling. The debris landed in the kitchen of the embassy with Wronski adding that the damage was "not large," with no casualties reported.

Show More