Kiev comes under major Russian missile and drone attack

Russia launched a major overnight attack on the Ukrainian capital Kiev with drones and ballistic missiles, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday.

Ukraine’s Air Force had warned on Telegram during the night of a possible Russian attack involving the new Oreshnik medium-range missile.

Kiev military administrator Tymur Tkachenko said 40 buildings had been damaged. At least one person was killed and around 20 others were injured, he wrote on Telegram.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko also reported numerous damaged buildings, including high-rises and at least one school. He urged residents of the city to remain in shelters in the early hours of Sunday.

The Kyiv Independent reported a “series of explosions” in the capital. According to initially unconfirmed reports, Russia may also have used hypersonic and cruise missiles in the attack.

The Times of Ukraine reported on Telegram that numerous fires had broken out in the city, including one near the government district.

Other parts of Ukraine were also targeted. The full extent of the Russian attack wave and its consequences were not immediately clear.

Poland puts air defences on alert

In neighbouring Poland, the military said on X that air defences had been placed on alert and military aircraft had taken off in response to the Russian attacks in Ukraine.

Poland has repeatedly put its air defences on alert during major attacks in Ukraine, sometimes with fighter jets from NATO partners also taking off.

Zelensky warned of Oreshnik attack

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had warned on Saturday evening that an Oreshnik attack was expected. Citing intelligence information, he said Kiev was also at risk.

Zelensky warned of a possible combined Russian attack involving different types of weapons and urged people to seek shelter during air raid alerts.

It initially remained unclear whether Russia had actually used an Oreshnik medium-range missile in the overnight attack on Kiev.

Russia has used the ballistic missile, which has a particularly high destructive power, twice before in its war against Ukraine – once without warheads in the south-eastern city of Dnipro and most recently in western Ukraine in January.