Ukraine war: What happened in Poland missile blast?

Poland's subject was placed connected precocious alert connected Tuesday evening aft a rocket landed connected its territory sidesplitting 2 people.

It came arsenic Russia fired dozens of missiles astatine targets successful Ukraine and Ukrainian forces tried to sprout them down with its ain missiles - portion of its aerial defence system.

As the Polish authorities - on with Nato allies - effort to found the facts, the BBC's unfastened root investigations squad has been analysing reports and studying images connected societal media to uncover much details astir the incident.

The detonation was archetypal reported successful the Polish media connected Tuesday evening, describing a blast adjacent to the Polish colony of Przewodow, astir 6km (4 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

A rocket had landed adjacent to a workplace loading country wherever employees weighed grain, destroying a adjacent building.

Images began circulating connected societal media soon afterwards, showing a crater and a damaged tractor and trailer.

An representation posted connected societal media by Polish constabulary connected Wednesday greeting shows officers examining the country (with the aforesaid trailer, spilled atom and debris successful the background).

Another representation circulating connected societal media past nighttime - which was wide shared - shows a fragment from a rocket that it was claimed was recovered astatine the scene.

Based connected this representation alone, the BBC has truthful acold been incapable to verify that it was recovered astatine the aforesaid determination due to the fact that of the deficiency of wider ocular clues successful the photo.

A BBC analogous connected the crushed was incapable to get adjacent to the scene, which has been sealed disconnected by the Polish authorities.

We person shown it to defence experts and asked them whether they tin enactment retired what benignant of rocket this was from, and who mightiness person fired it.

Mark Cancian, from the deliberation vessel CSIS, believes it whitethorn beryllium from an S-300 system. This benignant of rocket is typically utilized for surface-to-air attacks, and has been utilized by some Russia and Ukraine passim the war.

"Who fired the rocket is unclear," says J Andrés Gannon, a information adept astatine the US Council connected Foreign Relations, who agrees that it whitethorn beryllium from an S-300 system.

"We cognize Russia has been utilizing the S-300 for crushed attacks, adjacent though it's an aerial defence system, but Ukraine besides uses them for aerial defence against cruise missiles."

Dr Justin Bronk, a elder chap astatine deliberation vessel Rusi, agrees that it whitethorn beryllium from an S-300 system, but determination isn't capable grounds to place it yet.

The Polish premier curate said it was highly apt the rocket was fired by Ukraine during their defence against Russian attacks.

US President Joe Biden has said it was "unlikely" that the rocket was fired from Russia, with US officials' archetypal findings indicating it was fired by Ukrainian aerial defences.

Russia's closest constituent to the blast tract successful Poland is astir 580km away, acold further than the scope of the S-300 strategy that the experts we spoke to accidental appears to person been used.

Both Russia and Ukraine person these S-300 weapons and impeach each different of causing harm with them successful caller attacks.

The Ukrainians usage them to sprout down Russian missiles, and the Russians person claimed these person fallen to the crushed and caused civilian casualties.

It is precise hard to archer the root of a rocket from its debris, according to weapons experts.

We are continuing to analyse this incidental and volition update this portion erstwhile we get further details.