Russia carried out an overnight missile and drone strike on Kyiv, damaging residential buildings, sparking fires and injuring medical workers after Ukraine warned of a large-scale assault.
People shelter inside a metro station in Kyiv during an overnight Russian missile and drone attack as air-raid sirens sounded across the Ukrainian capital. Emergency crews responded to damaged residential buildings and multiple fires. (Photo: Reuters via ANI)
Russia launched a fresh overnight missile and drone attack on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, early Thursday, triggering explosions across the city, damaging residential buildings and sparking multiple fires, according to The New York Times.
The assault came hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said intelligence assessments suggested Russia was preparing another large-scale strike on the capital. He urged residents to pay close attention to air-raid alerts and remain vigilant.
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Air-raid sirens sounded across Kyiv late Wednesday night, followed by successive waves of attack drones and ballistic missiles. Residents reported prolonged air-defence activity before several powerful explosions were heard across the city.
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Authorities said fires broke out at multiple locations, including a major blaze in the city centre. Many residents took shelter in subway stations with sleeping bags and pets after officials warned that a large-scale attack was likely.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko appealed to residents to remain inside shelters after ballistic missiles entered Ukrainian airspace. According to The New York Times, another round of explosions was reported shortly before 2 am local time.
Klitschko later said emergency services had been deployed after a nine-storey apartment building collapsed. People were believed to be trapped beneath the debris.
Firefighters were also responding to fires in at least two districts, including one on the roof of a hotel and another at a residential building.
The full extent of casualties was not immediately clear. Klitschko said five medical workers were injured in the attack.
The latest strike came as Ukraine has stepped up long-range drone attacks on Moscow, targeted Russian fuel infrastructure and carried out strikes in Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, as Kyiv seeks to increase pressure on Moscow to end the war.
Speaking in Ireland before returning to Ukraine, Zelenskyy said, “Putin wants to keep fighting. That is why he must face conditions that make it impossible for him to keep this war going.”
Earlier, on June 25, Russia warned the United States over its continued military support for Ukraine.
At a weekly briefing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow had repeatedly conveyed its concerns to Washington over weapons transfers to Kyiv, warning that continued military assistance could have “unforeseen consequences” for regional and global stability.
Zakharova also accused Zelenskyy of displaying a “terrorist nature” over his recent remarks concerning Belarus.
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