KYIV, Ukraine — Russia unleashed the largest aerial assault of its war against Ukraine over the weekend, launching an unprecedented barrage of 367 drones and missiles that killed at least 12 civilians and left dozens injured across the country, Ukrainian officials said Sunday.
The overnight attack struck the capital Kyiv and multiple regions on the second consecutive night of intensified strikes. It coincided with Kyiv Day, a national holiday commemorating the founding of the city in the 5th century.
According to Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat, the onslaught included 69 missiles of various types and 298 drones, many of them Iranian-designed Shahed drones.
“This was the most massive strike in terms of the number of air attack weapons on Ukraine’s territory since the full-scale invasion began in 2022,” Ihnat told the Associated Press.
Russia did not immediately comment on the attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said more than 30 cities and villages were hit in the coordinated assault. Writing on X, he identified the affected regions as including Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Chernihiv, Sumy, Odesa, Poltava, Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, and Cherkasy.
“These were deliberate strikes on ordinary cities. Ordinary residential buildings were destroyed and damaged,” Zelenskyy said, again urging the United States and European allies to impose stronger sanctions on Russia.
He warned that without greater international pressure, Moscow’s campaign of destruction will persist.
“Determination matters now — the determination of the United States, of European countries, and of all those around the world who seek peace.”
Despite ongoing prisoner exchanges between the two nations — including the largest swap of the war — the aerial campaign underscores Russia’s continued resolve to press its military advantage through deep strikes on civilian infrastructure.
The Ukrainian Security Service confirmed at least four people were killed in Kyiv and 16 others injured. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a drone struck a student dormitory in the Holosiivskyi district, setting part of the building ablaze. Elsewhere in the city, private homes were destroyed and windows shattered in residential complexes.
In Zhytomyr region, officials said three children — ages 8, 12, and 17 — were killed and 12 others injured in the attacks. Four fatalities were also reported in the Khmelnytskyi region, while one man died in the Mykolaiv region in the south.
“A difficult Sunday morning in Ukraine after a sleepless night,” wrote Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on X. “The most massive Russian air attack in many weeks lasted all night.”
The village of Markhalivka, just outside Kyiv, was engulfed in smoke and debris. Liubov Fedorenko, 76, surveyed the ruins of her home, comparing the scene to Bakhmut and Mariupol, cities that have come to symbolize the war’s devastation.
“Thank God my daughter didn’t come visit,” she said through tears, explaining that the rocket had struck the side of the house where her grandchildren would have slept.
Her husband, Ivan Fedorenko, 80, added that their two dogs burned to death inside the home. “I want to bury them, but I’m not allowed yet,” he said.
The attacks came during the third day of a planned prisoner swap, the largest of the war to date. On Saturday, both sides exchanged 307 captives each, following a transfer of 390 people the previous day. Ukrainian and Russian officials confirmed that the exchange — the only outcome of this month’s Istanbul peace talks — would continue.
“We expect more to come tomorrow,” Zelenskyy said on Telegram.
Still, the massive drone-and-missile barrage made clear there is no ceasefire in sight. Russian air defenses also claimed to have shot down 110 Ukrainian drones overnight, indicating intensifying aerial engagements on both sides.
The roughly 1,000-kilometer front line remains active, with deep strikes and artillery fire continuing unabated. Tens of thousands of soldiers have already died, and both Ukraine and Russia have shown no sign of scaling back operations.
