Russia launched a massive overnight drone assault on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, injuring at least 23 people and causing fires and damage throughout the city, according to a report published by Reuters on Friday. The attacks began late Thursday and lasted over eight hours, with multiple waves hitting the city, the report said.
A Long Night of Attacks on Kyiv
Russia fired 539 drones and 11 missiles aimed at Ukrainian territory, the report stated, citing Ukraine’s Air Force.
“The central point of the strikes was the capital of Ukraine, the city of Kyiv!” the Air Force posted on Telegram.
Meanwhile, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed that 14 of the wounded were taken to the hospital, as damage extended over six of the city’s ten districts. Drone wreckage even set abalze a medical center in the green Holosiivskyi district, he said, according to Reuters.
Heavy Damage and Fierce Defenses
Drone attacks on Kyiv’s rail infrastructure damaged train tracks, leading to delays and rerouting of trains, Ukraine’s state railway Ukrzaliznytsia reported. Witnesses told the news agency of incessant blasts and volleys as Ukrainian air defenses attempted to intercept the drones.
Ukraine’s military claimed that it had downed 478 of the incoming drones and missiles, but harm and disruption in Kyiv persisted. Social media footage cited by the agency showed visuals of residents scrambling for cover, firemen fighting fires, and broken buildings with blown-in windows.
Conflict and Diplomacy Amid Violence
The attacks follow heightened Russian bombardments of Kyiv and escalating battles throughout Ukraine, including fatal shelling in the eastern city of Pokrovsk, where five were reportedly killed.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump stated that a recent phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin made “no progress” toward ending the war, while Moscow vowed to continue pressing to find an end to the conflict’s “root causes.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is looking forward to speaking with Trump in the near future regarding US arms supplies, which were recently suspended by Washington.
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