‘Massive’ Overnight Russian Attack on Kyiv Kills at least 10, Including Two Children

A large-scale overnight Russian drone and missile attack has devastated parts of Ukraine’s capital, killing at least 10 people, including two children, and wounding dozens more, according to Ukrainian officials. Powerful explosions rocked Kyiv in the early hours of Thursday, with Russian projectiles hitting residential buildings and critical infrastructure across several districts.

The assault, described by Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko as a “massive attack,” is the first major bombardment of the capital since US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Alaska earlier this month to discuss a path to peace. A five-storey residential building in the city’s Darnytskyi district was directly hit, with the head of Kyiv’s city military administration, Tymur Tkachenko, stating grimly, “Everything is destroyed.”

Rescue teams are frantically working at some 20 affected locations across the city, pulling people from beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings. Another strike in central Kyiv left a major road strewn with shattered glass, and images circulating online showed apartment buildings ablaze.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack as a “clear response to everyone in the world who, for weeks and months, has been calling for a ceasefire and for real diplomacy.” He lamented what he called “very arrogant and negative signals from Moscow” regarding negotiations and urged the international community, particularly China and Hungary, to react with “new, tough sanctions.”

“Russia chooses ballistics instead of the negotiating table. It chooses to continue killing instead of ending the war,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X. “The death of children should definitely stir far greater emotions than anything else.”

The attack comes amid stalled diplomatic efforts to end the war. While the US has been pushing for a resolution, a significant diplomatic impasse remains. Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defence claimed its air defense systems had intercepted over 100 Ukrainian drones overnight, while Ukraine reported successful strikes on two Russian oil refineries.