KYIV, Ukraine (BN24) — Russia pounded Ukraine’s capital overnight with a massive barrage of missiles and drones in what Ukrainian officials described as the largest aerial attack on Kyiv since the war began more than three years ago. The intense seven-hour assault, which extended into early Friday, injured at least 23 people and caused widespread destruction across several districts of the capital, officials said.
Air raid sirens blared throughout the night as explosions echoed across the city. Emergency vehicles flooded the streets as debris littered residential neighborhoods, igniting fires and damaging vital infrastructure.
“It was a harsh, sleepless night,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a statement Friday morning.
Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia launched a staggering 550 drones and missiles nationwide, most of them Iranian-made Shahed drones. The assault included at least 11 missiles, making it the most intense single aerial bombardment since Moscow’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
The attacks coincided with a renewed Russian push along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, where Ukrainian forces are reportedly under mounting pressure from coordinated ground offensives.
Alya Shahlai, a 23-year-old wedding photographer in Kyiv, said her home was destroyed during the barrage. “We were all in the basement shelter because it was so loud, staying home would have been suicidal,” she told The Associated Press. “Ten minutes later, there was a huge explosion, and the lights went out. People were screaming and panicking.”
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least 14 people were hospitalized after blasts damaged residential buildings, warehouses, garages and vehicles in five of the capital’s 10 districts. A five-story building partially collapsed in Solomianskyi district. Fires broke out at an auto shop and a seven-story apartment block. Similar scenes were reported in the Sviatoshynskyi, Shevchenkivskyi, Darnytskyi and Holosiivskyi districts.
Ukraine’s national rail operator said drone strikes also damaged sections of rail infrastructure in Kyiv.
The timing of the bombardment raised concerns, coming just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy called the assault a “deliberate signal” from Moscow showing it has no interest in ending the war.
Trump told reporters that the nearly hour-long conversation with Putin yielded “no progress at all.”
“I’m not happy about that,” Trump said before departing for a campaign rally in Iowa. “I don’t think he’s looking to stop.” Trump added that he would speak to Zelenskyy on Friday.
Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, confirmed that Russia intends to continue military operations until what Moscow describes as the “root causes” of the war are resolved — shorthand for halting NATO’s eastward expansion and reducing Western military support for Ukraine.
The attack comes amid heightened anxiety in Kyiv after the U.S. confirmed it has paused shipments of key military supplies, including air defense missiles. Pentagon officials cited low stockpiles as the reason for the delay.
Ukrainian leaders, caught off guard by the pause, have called for urgent international support. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the night “absolutely horrible,” while Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko described “families running into metro stations, basements, underground parking garages, [amid] mass destruction in the heart of our capital.”
“What Kyiv endured last night cannot be called anything but a deliberate act of terror,” she posted on X.
Ukrainian air defenses managed to intercept 270 drones and missiles, including two cruise missiles. However, 208 additional threats reportedly went off radar and were presumed to have been jammed. Russia successfully struck at least eight locations using nine missiles and 63 drones, authorities said.
In addition to Kyiv, strikes were reported in the regions of Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv. Fires broke out across multiple civilian and non-residential areas, including a 14-story apartment building and commercial warehouses. Several vehicles were also incinerated.
Despite the high interception rate, falling debris from downed drones damaged infrastructure across at least 33 locations.
The Kremlin’s intensified air assault has become a central component of its strategy, coming alongside efforts to punch through Ukrainian defenses on the ground. Ukrainian forces continue to face persistent offensives along the eastern front, especially near the Donetsk and Kharkiv regions.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion began, more than 57,000 people have been killed in Ukraine, according to the country’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between military and civilian deaths. The war has displaced over 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million population — most of them repeatedly.
Despite international diplomatic efforts, a ceasefire deal remains elusive. Trump said earlier this week that Israel had agreed to a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and urged Hamas to accept the terms — but similar diplomatic momentum appears absent on Ukraine.
AP
