A massive Russian missile and drone bombardment killed at least 15 people and injured 116 others across Ukraine during overnight attacks Tuesday, with the heaviest assault concentrated on the capital Kyiv, where civilians were targeted while sleeping in their homes.
Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko reported 14 deaths and 99 injuries as explosions reverberated throughout the city for hours during the nighttime assault. The bombardment completely destroyed a nine-story residential building and demolished dozens of apartments, prompting emergency workers to conduct rescue operations to extract survivors from beneath the debris.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the scale of the Russian offensive, stating that Moscow launched more than 440 drones and 32 missiles at Ukrainian targets. He characterized the Kyiv attack as “one of the most terrifying strikes” on the capital since the conflict began.
The assault represents one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv in recent months and occurred following two rounds of direct peace negotiations that failed to achieve progress toward ending the war, now in its fourth year. The timing underscores Russia’s continued commitment to military pressure despite diplomatic efforts.
Russia has systematically targeted civilian areas throughout Ukraine using missiles and drones, resulting in more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilian deaths according to United Nations documentation. Russian officials maintain they only strike military targets, despite extensive evidence of attacks on residential and civilian infrastructure.
Moscow has significantly intensified its aerial campaigns in recent months. Russia launched nearly 500 drones at Ukraine on June 10 in what represented the largest overnight drone bombardment of the war. The capital also endured heavy bombardment on April 24, when at least 12 people were killed in the deadliest assault on Kyiv in eight months.
The escalated long-range attacks have coincided with Russia’s summer offensive targeting eastern and northeastern sections of the approximately 1,000-kilometer front line, where Ukrainian forces face personnel shortages and require additional military support from Western allies.
Uncertainty surrounding U.S. policy regarding the conflict has generated doubts about the level of assistance Kyiv can expect. Zelenskyy had been scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump in Canada on Tuesday to advocate for increased support, but the White House announced Trump’s early return to Washington Monday night due to Middle East tensions.
Ukrainian forces have responded with their own domestically manufactured long-range drone capabilities. The Russian military reported intercepting 203 Ukrainian drones across 10 Russian regions between Monday evening and Tuesday morning, indicating the conflict’s expanding geographic scope.
Russian civil aviation agency Rosaviatsia temporarily suspended flights at all four Moscow airports overnight, along with airports in Kaluga, Tambov, and Nizhny Novgorod as a precautionary measure against potential Ukrainian drone activity.
The Russian drone strikes also targeted the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa, killing one person and injuring 17 others, according to regional administration head Oleh Kiper. The attack on Odesa demonstrates Russia’s continued focus on disrupting Ukraine’s economic infrastructure and maritime capabilities.
Zelenskyy criticized international inaction regarding Russian aggression, stating that Putin “is doing this simply because he can afford to continue the war. He wants the war to go on. It is troubling when the powerful of this world turn a blind eye to it.”
The almost nine-hour Russian assault delivered “direct hits on residential buildings,” according to a Kyiv City Military Administration statement. “Rockets from the upper floors to the basement,” officials described, indicating the comprehensive destruction of targeted structures.
Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko confirmed that a U.S. citizen died in the attack after suffering shrapnel wounds, highlighting the international dimension of civilian casualties. Thirty apartments were destroyed in a single residential block after being struck by a ballistic missile, Klymenko reported.
“We have 27 locations that were attacked by the enemy. We currently have over 2,000 people working there, rescuers, police, municipal services and doctors,” Klymenko told reporters at one attack site, illustrating the massive emergency response required.
Olena Lapyshniak, a 49-year-old resident whose apartment building was nearly leveled, described the terrifying experience. She heard a whistling sound followed by two explosions that destroyed her windows and doors. “It’s horrible, it’s scary, in one moment there is no life,” she said. “There’s no military infrastructure here, nothing here, nothing. It’s horrible when people just die at night.”
Casualties were reported in Kyiv’s Sviatoshynskyi and Solomianskyi districts. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said fires erupted in two additional city districts from falling debris of drones shot down by Ukrainian air defenses, demonstrating that even successful defensive actions can cause collateral damage.
The escalation follows Ukraine’s Security Service staging an audacious operation targeting Russian military aircraft at air bases deep within Russian territory, suggesting that Moscow’s intensified attacks may represent retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian military assets.
The attack’s timing and scale reflect Russia’s strategy of maintaining pressure on Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure while diplomatic efforts remain stalled. The targeting of residential buildings during nighttime hours when families are sleeping represents a continuation of tactics that international observers have characterized as deliberate attacks on civilian populations.
The humanitarian impact extends beyond immediate casualties, as thousands of residents have been displaced from damaged buildings and essential services disrupted across affected areas. Emergency services continue working to assess the full extent of damage and provide assistance to affected civilians.
The international community faces renewed pressure to respond to the escalating civilian casualties and systematic targeting of non-military infrastructure. The attack underscores the ongoing challenges in protecting Ukrainian civilians while diplomatic solutions remain elusive in the protracted conflict.
