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Russia pounded Kyiv and at least seven other Ukrainian regions with ballistic missiles and nearly 160 drones overnight, wounding over 20 people in the capital and forcing NATO-member Poland to scramble jets and shut two airports when strikes hit near its border.

What is a key fact in this story? (1)

**Russia** launched an overnight barrage on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities using Oniks anti-ship cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, four cruise missiles and nearly 160 drones, wounding over 20 people in the capital according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

What is a key fact in this story? (2)

**Poland** scrambled military jets and temporarily closed airports in Rzeszow and Lublin after Russia struck western Ukraine near the Polish border; sirens sounded across eastern Poland, though the Polish army registered no airspace violation.

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Russia strikes Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, Poland scrambles jets — SkimNews

By Globe and Mail World · Summarized & edited by Kapil Samant · 2026-09-17

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Russia launched an overnight barrage on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities using Oniks anti-ship cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, four cruise missiles and nearly 160 drones, wounding over 20 people in the capital according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko.
Poland scrambled military jets and temporarily closed airports in Rzeszow and Lublin after Russia struck western Ukraine near the Polish border; sirens sounded across eastern Poland, though the Polish army registered no airspace violation.
Zelensky said eight Ukrainian regions suffered damage, with a Metinvest steel plant in Zaporizhzhia hit for the fourth time in a month and Kyivstar mobile equipment damaged in the Kyiv region; energy infrastructure in Sumy and Odesa was also struck.
Ukraine's infrastructure ministry said a Russian drone attack killed the captain of a Tanzania-flagged vessel heading to a Ukrainian port and injured three crew members, while Ukraine retaliated by striking a Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl, igniting a fire later extinguished.
The U.S. House passed the sweeping Lindsey Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act on Wednesday — sent to Trump to sign — which Zelensky called an "extremely powerful tool" that could help force Russia to end the war.
The Kremlin warned further U.S. sanctions would make a peace deal harder to reach, as both sides kept attacking energy infrastructure despite Trump's recent claim that they had agreed to stop such strikes.

Why it matters: Russian strikes hit close enough to NATO territory to force Poland to scramble jets and temporarily ground flights — a concrete escalation, not rhetoric. With the most aggressive U.S. sanctions bill yet headed to Trump's desk, Moscow is being squeezed economically even as the Kremlin signals peace talks will only get harder, deepening the gap between Trump's claimed ceasefire progress and the nightly reality of missile barrages.