Air raid alert shatters first day of school in Kyiv after Russian missile strikes

KYIV, Ukraine -- Hours after Russian ballistic missiles shook Kyiv overnight, balloons floated above a schoolyard in the Ukrainian capital’s Obolon district on Tuesday. Bleary-eyed parents and children in festive outfits gathered to music, determined to celebrate the traditional start of the school year. But within seconds, an air raid alert sounded, and the crowd dispersed. Children’s laughter and music gave way to distant explosions.Ukrainian students are beginning their fifth school year since Russia’s invasion, with no end to the war in sight. Thousands of schools have adapted, shifting to remote or hybrid learning, holding classes in shelters or closing in destroyed or Russian-occupied towns.Russian attacks have destroyed an estimated 1 million textbooks, and officials are preparing for what could be one of the war’s hardest winters.Years of war are taking a heavy toll on Ukrainians as Russia escalates its attacks. Ukraine has few effective means of intercepting the growing barrage of high-speed ballistic missiles, while waves of jet-powered Shahed drones stretch some attacks over days.With sirens sounding across Kyiv every few hours, school principal Yevhen Poliakov considere...