Dozens of Russian missiles pound Kyiv in major attack | Ukraine
Russia carried out one of the largest ever ballistic missile attacks on Kiev; launched a five-hour raid that left at least one person dead and seven injured, as well as fires and damage throughout the city.
Ukrainian officials said the capital was hit by about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. Residents heard an air raid siren at 1.30am. Minutes later, after a series of explosions and explosions, the sound of air defenses was heard.
Houses shook and car alarms blared in Kiev’s historic center as dozens of missiles reached the area in less than an hour. At 6.30am a second air raid siren was heard and more fighting was reported.
A three-storey building in the central Shevchenkivsky district caught fire. Rescuers pulled out several people trapped inside and found a body. Four more areas were affected, with fires reported in office and residential buildings and a dormitory.
Residents who took shelter in the Lukyanivska metro station published images after the ceiling of the ground floor entrance hall collapsed due to a huge blast wave. The station was temporarily closed.
The military administration of the city said in a statement on Telegram, “According to preliminary information, unfortunately one person died as a result of the attack.” Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that seven people were injured in the incident.
Russia has been firing drones and missiles at Kiev and other Ukrainian cities almost every day since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked Western allies to help Ukraine strengthen its air defenses and provide it with advanced US-made Patriot interceptor weapons capable of shooting down ballistic missiles.
Ukraine’s own interceptor stocks appear to have dwindled. The attacks came amid massive anti-government protests in Kiev following Zelenskyy’s decision to fire the country’s popular and modernizing defense minister, Mykhailo Federov. Demonstrators want Federov to be reinstated and replaced by Soviet-style commander-in-chief Colonel Oleksandr Syrskyi.
There were also attacks on Russia. On Saturday, Ukraine sent attack drones to destroy e-commerce warehouses in the Moscow and Tambov regions, killing eight people and causing massive fires.
Russian attacks early Saturday killed five people and injured almost 20 in several areas.
“Two major logistics facilities were hit in the Moscow and Tambov regions in response to Russia’s attacks on our civilian infrastructure, cities and communities,” Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian president claimed that the centers were used “to supply approved components for drone production and navigation equipment.”
