Deadly Russian overnight strikes on Kyiv kill 12, including children

At least 12 people, including two children, were killed in Kyiv after Russia launched massive overnight drone and missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital and other regions, officials said.

Russia carried out a large-scale drone and missile attack on Kyiv and multiple regions of Ukraine early Thursday, damaging residential buildings and critical infrastructure, and leaving residents trapped under rubble, according to Ukrainian authorities.

The victims’ bodies were pulled from the rubble of a partially destroyed apartment building in Kyiv, where rescuers continued searching for at least 20 people feared missing, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (DSNS) said.

Authorities said 45 people, including two children, were injured in the attacks. Kyiv officials declared Friday a day of mourning.

Russia’s overnight air strikes also hit civilian infrastructure, including ports in the southern Odesa region and railway networks, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said.

In Kyiv, officials reported that part of a residential building collapsed in the Darnytskyi district, prompting fears that residents were trapped beneath the debris. Rescue teams were deployed immediately, according to Kyiv military administration head Tymur Tkachenko.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said multiple districts of the capital were affected, with fires breaking out after drone debris struck a 12-storey residential building.

Unofficial footage shared on Telegram showed several apartment buildings engulfed in flames across the city.

Casualties and nationwide strikes

Ukraine’s air force said Russian missiles and drones targeted several regions, including Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv and Poltava.

Residential areas, railway infrastructure and critical facilities were hit, with Ukrainian officials reporting dozens of impacts on transport networks.

Heavy fighting along the front line

Military officials reported intense combat across a 1,200-kilometre front line, with 187 clashes recorded in 24 hours.

The heaviest fighting was concentrated near Pokrovsk in the east and Huliaipole in the south, where Russian forces launched repeated assaults.

The daytime drone attacks on Wednesday on critical infrastructure in western Ukraine also triggered security responses in neighbouring countries. NATO-member Poland scrambled fighter jets as a precaution, the Polish army said.

Slovakia temporarily closed border crossings with Ukraine for security reasons and condemned the latest Russian air attacks, including strikes near its border, the foreign minister said.

Moldova also reported a drone entering its airspace for around 300 kilometres before disappearing from radar, calling it a threat to civilian safety.

Hungary condemned the strikes on areas of Ukraine with ethnic Hungarian communities and summoned the Russian ambassador. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the Hungarian action as an “important message”.

“It certainly cannot be called a coincidence that one of the longest massive Russian attacks against Ukraine takes place precisely at the time when the President of the United States arrived for a visit to China,” Zelenskyy said on Telegram.

Infrastructure under pressure

Ukraine’s state energy company Naftogaz confirmed damage to facilities in Kharkiv and Zhytomyr regions. Power outages were reported in parts of western Ukraine, including after strikes on critical infrastructure in Zhovkva.

Local officials also reported attacks on residential buildings in Ivano-Frankivsk and other western cities.

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Escalating drone warfare

Ukrainian military intelligence said Russia’s attack strategy aimed to overwhelm air defences by deploying drones in complex routes close to the Belarus border, followed by missile strikes.

Officials described the barrage as one of the most intense since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, highlighting a continued escalation in drone warfare tactics.

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Ukraine Russia Kyiv Energy Facilities Naftogaz Moldova drones Poland Fighter Jets