KYIV – Loud explosions rocked Kyiv early Sunday as Russia launched a major overnight assault on the Ukrainian capital, forcing residents to take shelter for the second consecutive night.
According to Ukrainian officials, Russia fired 14 ballistic missiles and sent 250 attack drones into Ukrainian airspace overnight. Ukraine’s air force confirmed that it intercepted six missiles and shot down 245 drones in one of the largest aerial attacks in recent weeks.
Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said over a dozen enemy drones entered the capital’s airspace, and more were on their way. “Some have been taken down, but others are still entering Kyiv,” he warned, calling the night “challenging” due to ongoing threats from missiles and strategic aircraft.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed that the capital was “under attack” and urged citizens to stay in shelters. Debris from the assault damaged a five-storey residential building, but no casualties have been reported so far.
These back-to-back night attacks came shortly after Russia and Ukraine carried out the largest prisoner exchange since the war began. On Friday and Saturday, 307 prisoners from each side were swapped in a rare moment of cooperation amid the conflict.
President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the new wave of attacks, saying they showed that Moscow was “prolonging the war.” He renewed calls for tougher sanctions on Russia, stressing the urgent need for more international pressure to stop the aggression.