Russian missile strikes on Kyiv leave at least nine dead
Russia launched a large-scale missile attack on Kyiv and its surrounding region overnight, killing at least nine people and wounding dozens, while the assault also triggered security responses in NATO members Poland and Romania.
Russian forces carried out a massive missile attack on Ukraine's capital Kyiv and the wider region overnight into Thursday, killing at least nine people and wounding dozens more, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that the strikes hit residential areas and warehouses. A medical facility and an educational institution were also damaged, the city's military administration reported. Klitschko later said the death toll in the capital had risen to eight, with 33 people wounded.
In the Brovary district of the broader Kyiv region, one man was killed and another wounded, regional governor Tymur Tkachenko said, adding that an industrial facility was damaged and emergency services were working to put out a resulting fire.
Russia's defence ministry said the strikes targeted facilities producing drone components, a military depot and a logistics hub. Ukraine's air force had earlier warned of Russian Kalibr missiles near the village of Kagarlyk in the Kyiv region, heading toward the capital.
The attack also prompted security responses from neighbouring NATO members. Poland's military command said it mobilised aircraft and activated air defences to protect its airspace, particularly near the Ukrainian border. Romania's defence ministry said radar systems detected aerial targets near the border overnight, leading to the scrambling of two Spanish fighter jets on a NATO mission and a Romanian air force helicopter. A drone entered Romanian airspace near Galati before crashing in an unpopulated area of Tulcea county.
Ukraine's retaliatory strikes
Russia reported a large Ukrainian drone attack of its own. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 250 drones had flown toward the Moscow region overnight, with most intercepted far from the capital and 28 destroyed within the region itself.
While Kyiv has endured near-nightly bombardments, Ukraine has also intensified its strikes on Russian territory in recent months, partly in an effort to pressure Moscow into negotiations to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II.
