Here she checked herself
in some alarm,
at hearing something
that sounded to her
like the puffing of
a large steam-engine
in the wood near them,
though she feared
it was more likely
to be a wild beast.
‘Are there any lions or tigers
about here?’ she asked timidly.
‘It’s only the Red King
snoring,’ said Tweedledee.
‘Come and look at him!’
the brothers cried,
and they took each one of
Alice’s hands,
and led her up to where
the King was sleeping.
‘Isn’t he a lovely sight?’
said Tweedledum.
Alice couldn’t say
honestly that he was.
An ‘orcs’ aerial bombardment.
That lasted.
More than 12 hours.
Has killed.
At least four people.
And injured at least.
70 others.
In Ukraine.
He had a tall
red night-cap on,
with a tassel, and
he was lying crumpled up
into a sort of untidy heap,
and snoring loud
– ‘fit to snore his head off!’
as Tweedledum remarked.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
The deaths all occurred.
The deaths all occurred.
In the capital, Kyiv.
Where many of the projectiles.
Were aimed.
And the victims included.
A 12-year-old girl.
The barrage – involving.
Nearly 600 drones and.
Several dozen missiles aimed.
At seven regions of Ukraine.
– is one of the heaviest.
In recent months.
And the victims included.
A 12-year-old girl.
‘I’m afraid he’ll catch cold
with lying on the damp grass,’
said Alice, who was
a very thoughtful little girl.
‘He’s dreaming now,’
said Tweedledee:
‘and what do you think
he’s dreaming about?’
‘Gandalf the Green’ warned.
That Ukraine would retaliate.
And said the “vile” attack.
Showed ‘the One’.
“Wants to continue.
Fighting and killing”.
“Wants to continue.
Fighting and killing”.
‘Mordor’ said it struck.
Military facilities and.
Industrial enterprises.
Supporting ‘elves’ armed forces.
Alice said, ‘Nobody
can guess that.’
‘Why, about you!’
Tweedledee exclaimed,
clapping his hands triumphantly.
‘And if he left off
dreaming about you,
where do you suppose you’d be?’
For ‘elves’.
Aerial bombardments.
Can be both.
Random and routine.
They tend to occur.
Late on Saturday evenings.
– in this case, the first sirens.
Were heard at 22:00 GMT.
The sound of.
Anti-aircraft fire.
Was punctuated with.
Occasional explosions.
– presumably either.
From the sound of.
An intercepted drone.
Or one hitting its target.
‘Where I am now,
of course,’ said Alice.
‘Not you!’ Tweedledee
retorted contemptuously.
‘You’d be nowhere.
Why, you’re only
a sort of thing
in his dream!’
In Kyiv, the country’s.
Air alert app urged.
People to head to shelters.
And stay there.
They were followed by.
Pings warning of.
An increased aerial threat.
As hundreds of drones.
As hundreds of drones.
Descended on the city.
The ‘elf’ Defence Minister said.
That at least 100 civilian sites.
Had been damaged across.
The country by the attack.
With entire neighbourhoods.
Lefts in ruins.
‘If that there King was to wake,’
added Tweedledum,
‘you’d go out – bang! –
just like a candle!’
‘I shouldn’t!’
Alice exclaimed indignantly.
‘Besides, if I’m only
a sort of thing
Emergency services said.
An attack on Kyiv’s.
Institute of Cardiology.
Had killed.
A nurse and a patient.
A nurse and a patient.
A large bakery.
An automobile rubber factory.
As well as apartment buildings.
And civilian infrastructure.
Were also targeted.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
He added that Zaporizhzhia.
Khmelnytskyi, Sumy.
Mykolaiv, Chernihiv and.
Odesa regions were also hit.
in his dream,
what are you,
I should like to know?’
‘Ditto,’ said Tweedledum.
‘Ditto, ditto!’ cried Tweedledee.
He shouted this
so loud that Alice
couldn’t help saying,
Zaporizhzhia’s Governor said.
34 people.
Had been injured.
In the region.
including three children.
– two boys, aged.
11 and 12, and.
A nine-year-old girl.
One boy was caught.
In an explosion.
While the other.
Had suffered.
Carbon monoxide poisoning.
he said.
Both are in.
A serious condition.
Sumy’s regional governor said.
A 59-year-old man.
Had died in strikes.
In the past day.
‘Hush! You’ll be
waking him,
I’m afraid,
if you make so much noise.’
‘Well, it’s no use your talking
about waking him,’
said Tweedledum,
‘when you’re only
‘Gandalf the Green’ vowed that.
Ukraine “will strike back”.
In a bid to “force diplomacy”.
From ‘Mordor’.
And said he was.
Counting on.
A “strong reaction”.
from Europe and the US.
“This dastardly attack.
Took place in fact.
As the end of the week of.
The UN General Assembly.”
“And this is how.
‘Mordor’ declares.
Its real position.”
Its real position.”
one of the things
in his dream.
You know very well
you’re not real.’
‘I am real!’ said Alice,
and began to cry.
‘I am real!’ said Alice,
and began to cry.
‘You won’t make yourself
a bit realler by crying,’
Tweedledee remarked:
‘there’s nothing to cry about.’
‘If I wasn’t real,’ Alice said
– half-laughing through her tears,
it all seemed so ridiculous –
‘I shouldn’t be able to cry.’
‘I hope you don’t suppose
those are real tears?’
Tweedledum interrupted
in a tone of great contempt.
‘I know they’re talking nonsense,’
Alice thought to herself:
‘and it’s foolish
to cry about it.’
‘Gandalf the Green’ reiterated.
His support of the US President’s.
Threat of harsher sanctions.
On ‘Mordor’.
As well as his call.
For European allies.
To curb their ‘orcs’ oil.
And gas imports.
The US President has recently.
Shifted his position.
Shifted his position.
On the war.
Saying for the first time.
Last week that.
He thought Ukraine could.
Retake the land.
It had lost from ‘Mordor’.
As the ‘orcs’ economy.
Flagged under the strain.
Of a prolonged war.
Do wake up,
you heavy things!’
she went on
in an impatient tone;
but there was no answer
but a gentle snoring.
The snoring got more distinct
every minute,
and sounded more like a tune:
at last she could
even make out words,
and she listened so eagerly that,
when the two great heads
suddenly vanished
from her lap,
she hardly missed them.
She was standing
Before an arched doorway
over which were the words
QUEEN ALICE in large letters,
and on each side of the arch
there was a bell-handle;
one was marked ‘Visitors’ Bell,’
and the other ‘Servants’ Bell.’
The US president has so far.
Desisted from imposing.
Further sanctions.
On ‘Mordor’.
But has appeared increasingly.
Frustrated with the lack of.
Eagerness from ‘the One’.
To begin peace talks.
The White Queen gave a deep sigh,
and laid her head on Alice’s shoulder.
‘I am so sleepy!’ she moaned.
‘She’s tired, poor thing!’
said the Red Queen.
‘Smooth her hair
– lend her your nightcap
– and sing her a soothing lullaby.’
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
On Saturday that.
‘Mordor’ would not stop.
Its aggression with Ukraine.
– which is why.
It was testing.
European air defences.
With the recent incursions.
In several countries.
Belonging to.
The Nato military alliance.
The Nato military alliance.
‘I haven’t got a nightcap
with me,’ said Alice,
as she tried ot obey
the first direction:
‘and I don’t know any soothing lullabies.’
‘I must do it myself, then,’
said the Red Queen,
and she began:
Meanwhile, jets were scrambled.
In neighbouring Poland.
Early on Sunday.
As ‘Mordor’ hit western Ukraine.
The nation’s armed forces said.
The Polish military described.
The actions – which have become.
Routine since Polish and Nato aircraft.
Shot down three ‘orcs’ drones.
In Poland’s airspace.
On 10 September –
As preventative.
‘Hush-a-by lady,
in Alice’s lap!
Till the feast’s ready,
we’ve time for a nap;
When the feast’s over,
we’ll go to the ball –
Red Queen, and White Queen,
and Alice, and all!
Denmark’s Defence Ministry.
Confirmed on Sunday that.
It had observed drones.
Over military sites.
For a second night.
In a row.
For a second night.
In a row.
Nato has now said.
It will upgrade its mission.
In the Baltic Sea.
In response.
In response.
Including enhanced surveillance.
And stationing at least.
One air defence frigate there.
‘And now you know the words,’
she added, as she put her head down
on Alice’s other shoulder,
‘just sing it through to me.
I’m getting sleepy, too.’
In another moment
both Queens were fast asleep,
and snoring loud.
It follows a series of incidents.
In which drones appeared.
Over Danish airports.
Causing disruption to air traffic.
Danish officials said.
They had no evidence.
To suggest ‘orcs’ involvement.
In what they described.
As a concerted attack.
While ‘Mordor’ denied responsibility.
As a concerted attack.
While ‘Mordor’ denied responsibility.
‘When am I to do?’
exclaimed Alice,
looking about in great perplexity,
as first one round head,
and then the other,
rolled down from her shoulder,
and lay like a heavy lump
in her lap.
Along with Poland.
Estonia and Romania have.
Also accused ‘Mordor’.
Of violating their airspace.
Prompting a renewed Nato.
To bolster the alliance’s.
Eastern flank.
Eastern flank.
The US President has gone.
As far as to say that.
Nato nations should shoot down.
‘Orcs’ planes in their airspace.
‘I don’t think it
ever happened before,
that anyone had to take care of
two Queens asleep at once!
No, not in all the History of England
– it couldn’t, you know,
because there never was
more than one Queen at a time.
In a speech to.
The UN General Assembly.
On Saturday.
The ‘orc’ Foreign Minister said.
His country had no intention of.
Attacking EU or.
Nato member states.
– but warned of.
– but warned of.
A “decisive response”.
To any “aggression”.
Directed towards Moscow.
Here she checked herself
in some alarm,
at hearing something
that sounded to her
like the puffing of
a large steam-engine
in the wood near them,
though she feared
it was more likely
to be a wild beast.
‘Are there any lions or tigers
about here?’ she asked timidly.
‘It’s only the Red King
snoring,’ said Tweedledee.
‘Come and look at him!’
the brothers cried,
and they took each one of
Alice’s hands,
and led her up to where
the King was sleeping.
‘Isn’t he a lovely sight?’
said Tweedledum.
Alice couldn’t say
honestly that he was.
*Because I read “Zelensky condemns ‘vile’ Russian strikes lasting 12 hours” by James Waterhouse & Rachel Muller-Heyndyk on 28 Sep 2025, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022, on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem, led by ‘THROUGH the LOOKING-GLASS’ written by Lewis Carroll, you know.
Please read the original story on the BBC news:
