Poland suspects fire at Starlink station was act of sabotage

WARSAW, Sept 24 (Reuters) – A fire broke out on Wednesday evening at a ground-based Starlink satellite communications station in central Poland providing connectivity for the region, including Ukraine, Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said, adding the systems were now operational.

Poland has been on heightened alert for acts of sabotage since Russia’s invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in 2022. Russia has repeatedly denied any such action. 

“The fire engulfed the power station and the generator; it is clear that this act of sabotage was deliberately designed to disable the station — effectively cutting off the internet connection… and disrupting internet access for various institutions, including the Ukrainian military,” he said.

“While everything is operational today, we must recognise —as Prime Minister Tusk recently noted — that this is an element of hybrid warfare.” 

He added that while it was not established that Russia was responsible for the fire, “many signs suggest this aligns with Russia’s new doctrine of attack”.

(Reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)