Early Friday, Russia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, killing at least six people, Ukrainian officials reported. The powerful explosions echoed throughout the country as Russia retaliated following a warning from President Vladimir Putin, conveyed through U.S. President Donald Trump, in response to Ukrainian drone strikes that had destroyed several strategic Russian bombers deep inside Russian territory.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy revealed that among those killed in Kyiv were three emergency responders who had arrived at the scene of an initial strike but were killed in a subsequent Russian attack. Additionally, two people died in Chernihiv, a northern city, and at least one person was killed in Lutsk, located in the northwest. Zelenskiy stated in his nightly address that the fatalities in Kyiv were rescue workers targeted in repeated strikes.
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Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned Russia’s attacks, saying that in retaliation for its destroyed aircraft, Russia targeted civilians, damaging multi-storey buildings and critical energy infrastructure. Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed the strikes were aimed at military and related targets as a response to what it described as Ukrainian “terrorist acts.”
President Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One, remarked that Russia’s retaliation came after Ukraine destroyed Russian bombers, stating, “They gave Putin a reason to go in and bomb the hell out of them last night.”
In total, Zelenskiy confirmed that 80 people were injured across Ukraine due to these attacks, which affected multiple cities and towns, and warned that some individuals might still be trapped under debris. Rescue teams recovered two bodies from the rubble of a destroyed industrial site in Chernihiv, and in Lutsk, a man’s body was found under the ruins of an apartment block. Emergency workers continued searching for his missing wife. Lutsk also suffered damage to schools and government buildings, and 30 people were reported injured.
The western city of Ternopil also experienced Russian strikes targeting industrial sites and infrastructure, causing power outages. The regional authorities reported 10 injuries and advised residents to remain indoors due to hazardous air quality caused by a fire following the attack.
The Ukrainian air force reported that Russia deployed an unprecedented number of 407 drones along with 45 cruise and ballistic missiles in this single assault, marking one of the largest attacks by drones recorded in the conflict.
In Kyiv, the metro system was disrupted when Russian strikes damaged the tracks between stations. The state railway company rerouted some trains due to damage to the rails outside the city. Witnesses described loud explosions shaking buildings far from the impact zones, prompting many Kyiv residents to seek refuge in underground metro stations and parking garages.
A drone strike hit an apartment building in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district, leaving a large hole and scorch marks. Falling debris damaged cars parked below, and police investigators examined parts of the drone at the scene. Throughout the night, the sounds of Russian kamikaze drones and Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire filled the skies.
Zelenskiy called for intensified international pressure on Russia, warning that any delay in decisive action would mean complicity in the ongoing bloodshed. He emphasized the need for swift measures to halt further loss of life.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military launched pre-emptive strikes on Russian airfields at Engels and Dyagilevo in the Saratov and Ryazan regions and targeted at least three fuel storage facilities. This followed a daring operation last weekend where Ukrainian operatives destroyed some of Russia’s strategic bombers on the ground using quadcopter drones concealed in wooden sheds.
Following a phone conversation between Trump and Putin on Wednesday, Trump noted that the Kremlin was planning a retaliatory response to Ukraine’s audacious attack on its air bases.
