Hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles rained down on Ukraine overnight, in a sweeping Russian barrage that authorities said left 22 people dead and more than 100 injured.
The strikes hit multiple cities, including Kyiv and Dnipro, coming after Russian warnings of “systematic” attacks on the capital following a drone strike last month on a dormitory in Ukraine’s Russian-held Luhansk region.
Kyiv denies targeting the dormitory.
The latest bombardment marked the third heavy assault on Kyiv in less than a month. Russia has kept up relentless attacks on Ukrainian cities, including the capital, since launching its full-scale invasion of its smaller neighbour in 2022.
US-brokered talks on the war in Ukraine have stalled with Washington focusing on Iran, while Russian advances on the battlefield have slowed this year and Kyiv has stepped up strikes on Russian oil refineries
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched 73 missiles and more than 600 drones in the overnight operation, and he appealed to Washington for additional Patriot missile interceptors as Kyiv’s supplies dwindle.
“This was a large-scale attack and an absolutely clear statement from Russia: If Ukraine is not protected from ballistic and other missile strikes, these attacks will continue,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram.
The Kremlin said the conflict had entered “a new paradigm” after what it called “inhumane acts of terror” by Ukraine’s military against civilians, mirroring allegations Kyiv has levelled at Russian forces. Moscow last week warned of systematic strikes and urged foreigners to leave Kyiv.
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Mr Zelensky sent a letter last week to US President Donald Trump and Congress, asking for air defence systems. As of yesterday, officials said he had not received a response.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha urged partners to take “concrete steps” to help Ukraine and to intensify pressure on Russia, calling for stronger sanctions alongside additional military assistance.
“Moscow is losing on the battlefield. No number of missiles can change this. What we can change is Russia’s ability to continue terror,” he said on X.
The US has been Ukraine’s main foreign supplier of weapons, though Kyiv has also been purchasing Patriot missiles through a NATO initiative funded by European allies.
The aftermath of a Russian strike on Dnipro
Russia’s war in Ukraine has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted large parts of the population and left cities, towns and villages shattered. Russia controls about one-fifth of Ukraine.
Ukraine has also struck civilian targets during attacks on Russia or Russian-occupied areas, though on a far smaller scale. Both sides deny deliberately targeting civilians.
Photos showed towering blasts and thick smoke rising over high-rise buildings in Kyiv, where officials said six people were killed and more than 80 wounded.
“We couldn’t understand what was happening – some kind of apocalypse?” said Olha Mudra, her face and clothes covered in dust, speaking at the site of one strike while accompanied by her six-year-old daughter, Natalia.
In the southeastern city of Dnipro, local officials said 16 people were killed overnight, including two young boys. Russia struck the city again later yesterday, and at least two more people were injured.
In Kyiv, the assault damaged at least nine high-rise buildings, as well as a kindergarten, a clinic, offices and administrative buildings. The attack also temporarily cut power to 140,000 residents, according to power company DTEK.
More than 40,000 people sought shelter in the Kyiv subway system — the largest such number in recent years — with some carrying pets, belongings and even mattresses.
Thousands of residents took shelter in metro stations in Kyiv
Ukraine’s Air Force said the onslaught included 33 ballistic missiles, which are difficult to intercept, and eight Zircon hypersonic missiles — appearing to be the highest number of such missiles used simultaneously during the war.
Moscow says the Zircon has a range of 1,000km and can travel at nine times the speed of sound. Ukrainian Air Force units said they shot down or neutralised 40 missiles and 602 drones, though no Zircon was listed among those intercepted.
Russia’s defence ministry said it carried out a “massive strike” on defence industry facilities using high-precision long-range weapons, adding that 10 military production facilities in Kyiv were hit.
In Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, officials said 14 people were injured in the attacks, including a child.
NATO member Poland said it scrambled military jets to secure its airspace after the Russian strikes on Ukraine.
Russian regions also reported incoming attacks. Local authorities in the southern Krasnodar region said on Telegram that the Ilsky oil refinery caught fire after a drone strike, which Ukraine’s military confirmed.
In Russia’s Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, local authorities said an 11-year-old boy was injured when a Ukrainian drone hit a home.
Russia downed 148 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russian news agencies reported, citing the defence ministry.
Reuters could not independently verify all the reports.
