Russia strikes Kyiv with missiles and drones, injuring at least 11 people overnight

Russia launched a massive overnight attack on Ukraine's capital Kyiv with missiles and drones, triggering loud explosions that shook the city for hours. The strikes hit residential buildings and sparked a fire at a hotel on a central boulevard, injuring at least 11 people, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Klitschko added that people were trapped in a damaged nine-story residential building and the roof of another high-rise apartment building was on fire. The mayor urged residents to remain in shelters, describing an ongoing "furious enemy attack" on the capital.

The attack, involving ballistic and cruise missiles as well as drones, affected all 10 districts of the city on both sides of the Dnipro River. Many residents took shelter in metro stations after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other authorities issued initial warnings. Unofficial Telegram channels showed crowds sheltering underground as multiple explosions were heard in Kyiv.

Zelenskyy had earlier warned that intelligence reports indicated a likely overnight attack and said he was cutting short his visit to Dublin, where he was attending the start of Ireland's six-month term as rotating president of the EU. Russia has intensified its attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks, even as Ukraine's own long-range drone campaign against Russian military sites and energy facilities has caused fuel shortages and disrupted supply lines inside Russia.

NATO member Poland scrambled fighter jets as a preventive measure, the Polish armed forces said on X. "These actions are of a preventive nature and are aimed at securing and protecting the airspace, especially in areas adjacent to the threatened regions," the post said.