Hundreds of thousands in Warsaw for President Lech Kaczynski's Memorial Service

Hundreds of thousands of Poles have crowded into a square in central Warsaw for a memorial service honouring the victims of the Smolensk plane crash that claimed the lives of the Polish president, his wife and dozens of the nation's elite.

A sombre procession of thousands upon thousands of mourners from
all over Poland made their way to Pilsudski Square Photo: AP

From The Telegraph
By Matthew Day

Jaroslaw Kaczynski (3rd L), brother, and Marta (4th left), daughter of the late President Lech Kaczynski during the memorial ceremony Photo: REUTERS

The memorial ceremony for the 96 victims of the plane crash in Smolensk Photo: REUTERS

Polish President Lech Kaczynski died in a plane crash in Russia Photo: AFP

Russian rescuers inspect the wreckage of the Polish government Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft which crashed near Smolensk airport Photo: AFP/GETTY

In a day of high emotion, air-raid and police sirens wailed across the city at midday for two minutes as Poles, some weeping, stood still in memory of 96 who died in the tragedy. Earlier in the day the sirens had signalled the exact time, 8:56, when the aircraft carrying president Kaczynski had crashed as it approached Smolensk airport in western Russia.

A sombre procession of thousands upon thousands of mourners from all over Poland made their way to Pilsudski Square, a place of deep symbolic significance for Poles as it was there that Pope John Paul II delivered a sermon in 1979 that inspired them to rise up against communism.

“Things like this never happen, they are impossible. It is the greatest tragedy in the history of Poland since World War II,” Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, told the assembled mourners.

“None of us can remember an incident when so many great and important people died in one tragic moment. The list of those who died comes from the whole of Poland, and that list is Polish history.”

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Polish Pilots on Kaczynski Jet 'Saw Crash Coming'

Funerals for the victims are due to be held over the weekend.

A black box voice recording from the Polish jet which crashed in Russia shows the pilots knew they were about to crash, Polish officials say. Polish chief prosecutor Andrzej Seremet said it was clear the crew knew disaster was "inevitable" after the plane hit tree-tops.

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Polish President Lech Kaczynski Dies in Plane Crash

Polish President Lech Kaczynski and scores of others have been killed in a plane crash in Russia.

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Polish Athlete Hailed for Heroic Defense of Unborn Life

From Catholic World News

A Polish volleyball star who was buried on June 9 is being compared by local Catholics to Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla because of her heroic sacrifice for her unborn child.

Agata Mroz, who was originally known for her athletic prowess, was buried in her hometown of Tarnow. Mroz was pregnant with her first child when doctors discovered she had a fatal case of leukemia. After consulting with her husband, Mroz delayed a bone-marrow transplant until after she gave birth to her daughter Liliana on April 4, 2008.

Polish fans dubbed the national team which Mróz led the "Golden Girls," due to their looks and their successes in international competitions. The national team won the European women’s volleyball championship in 2003 and 2005.

Auxiliary Bishop Marian Florczyk of Kielce, Poland has said that Mroz’s testimony is an example of “love of life, motherhood, the desire to give life, the heroic love of an unborn child.” On June 4, a few hours after Mroz’s death, Polish President Lech Kaczynski announced that she will be posthumously awarded the Polonia Restituta, one of Poland’s highest awards for extraordinary and distinguished service.