Russian air attack interrupts lessons on first day of school in Ukraine

On the first day of the academic year in Ukraine, schools were disrupted when Russian forces launched an air attack during Knowledge Day celebrations on September 1, 2026, at a rebuilt school in Kyiv Oblast, according to the Kyiv Oblast Military Administration. The attack occurred just as the traditional academic year started amid the ongoing full-scale Russian invasion, marking the fifth time that the event had been impacted.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the occasion by visiting a school that had been destroyed by Russian forces in March 2022 but had since been rebuilt with a shelter and backup power. However, the attack forced the initial lessons to take place in a shelter, disrupting the normal classroom setting. Russian forces continued to target educational infrastructure in the days leading up to the academic year, aiming to disrupt schooling.

Meanwhile, about 200,000 pupils near the front lines would remain fully remote from classes, while the majority of the three million pupils would continue to attend school either in person or through a blended learning format. The government had allocated UAH 6 billion to improve access to shelters and other safety infrastructure for schools and educational facilities.