Russia launched one of the largest ballistic missile bombings against Kyiv since the beginning of the war in the early hours of this Sunday, killing at least one person and injuring 16 others, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Also during the night, another attack by Moscow killed four people and injured 19 more in Kharkiv, near the border with Russia.
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In the Ukrainian capital, a series of powerful explosions shook the city in the middle of the night in a bombing that, according to the Ukrainian Air Force, included 41 missiles, 18 of which were shot down. The army also claimed to have shot down 108 of the 125 drones used by Russia.
The impacts have devastated buildings in several districts and caused numerous fires. Among the damaged infrastructures are residential buildings, warehouses, a supermarket, and a student residence, detailed the mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, who added that three of the injured are in serious condition.
Regarding the Kharkiv attack, it was directed against a postal logistics center located on the outskirts of the city, according to the regional governor. This occurred just one day after Ukraine struck two warehouses of the e-commerce company Wildberries, known as the Russian Amazon, located in the Russian cities of Elektrostal and Kotovsk, causing the death of eight civilians.
Russian forces have also hit a rehabilitation center in the neighboring Sumy region, according to acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha. In the regional capital, one person died in an attack with guided bombs, the Ministry of the Interior reported.
Shortage of air defense
Russian forces have intensified ballistic missile attacks against Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, while Ukraine faces a severe shortage of U.S.-designed air defense systems.
Last week, Zelensky announced that the United States and Ukraine had reached a political agreement to manufacture Patriot interceptor missiles under license and expressed hope that production could begin before the end of the year.
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However, the escalation of Russian attacks, as the large-scale invasion enters its fifth year, increases pressure on Kyiv’s allies to accelerate the supply of systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.
“Protection against ballistic missiles is now our absolute and permanent priority,” Zelensky wrote on the social network X. “We need interceptor missiles every day.”
Smoke and debris in Kyiv
In western Kyiv, on Sunday morning emergency teams searched through still-smoking rubble and extinguished fires in apartments destroyed by the explosions. A neighbor who identified himself only as Vlad told Reuters he was inside his home when the blast wave tore off the balcony door, which hit him on the head. “My grandmother lives with me and she can’t walk. How could I run out and leave her behind?” he wondered.
Closer to the city center, missiles damaged a metro station that had already been targeted by Russia on previous occasions and destroyed a nearby pedestrian underpass. Debris removal work began this Sunday, while passersby watched the scene in apparent calm.
Fruit vendors in the affected area have resumed their activity at their makeshift stalls while, in the background, an excavator loaded rubble onto a truck. “Kyiv will flourish,” said Iryna Lomeiko, 68, reflecting the determination of a neighborhood that has suffered repeated Russian attacks. “Those idiots destroy everything, but we will repair it and rebuild it,” she assured. “Everything will be fine.”
