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‘Hundreds’ of Russian missiles and drones hit Ukraine in deadly strikes as Poland scrambles jets Zelenskyy condemns Russia’s ‘vile and brutal’ 12-hour bombardment of Ukraine
(about 4 hours later)
At least four people were killed in the overnight attacks on Kyiv and other regions as Poland takes preventive measure to secure airspace Moscow targets Kyiv and other regions with about 500 drones and 40 missiles, killing at least four people
Russian strikes involving “hundreds” of drones and missiles have killed at least four people, including a 12-year-old girl, and wounded at least 10 people in Ukraine on Sunday, as Poland scrambled fighter jets to secure its airspace. Russia-Ukraine war – latest news updates
An air raid alert was in place over the Kyiv region, with the local military administration saying Russia was attacking with drones and missiles. Kyiv has experienced one of its worst bombardments since the start of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with at least four people killed in what Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as a “vile and brutal” attack.
“Russia launched another massive air attack on Ukrainian cities while people were sleeping,” Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said on X. Ukraine’s president said Russia launched about 500 drones and more than 40 missiles in a bombardment that lasted more than 12 hours over Saturday night and into Sunday morning. The main targets were the Ukrainian capital and the regions of Zaporizhzhia, Khmelnytskyi, Sumy, Mykolaiv, Chernihiv and Odesa.
“Again, hundreds of drones and missiles, destroying residential buildings and causing civilian casualties.” Zelenskyy said the onslaught was the “virtual culmination” of last week’s UN general assembly meeting, at which Donald Trump expressed support for Ukraine. Zelenskyy called on allies to stop all Russian oil imports and promised Ukraine would “strike back”.
He posted footage of flames bursting from the windows of a multi-storey apartment block, which Sybiha said was a result of the attack. “This is how Russia is making its real position known. Moscow wants to continue to fight and kill and deserves only the harshest pressure in the world,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. “The Kremlin benefits from continuing this war and terror as long as there are energy funds and a shadow navy.”
Timur Tkachenko, the head of the capital’s military administration, had said early reports pointed to “three fatalities”, “including a 12-year-old girl killed by Russians”. Kyiv echoed with the sound of anti-aircraft fire early on Sunday as waves of drones arrived in a grey dawn sky. Residents scrambled to take cover as air raid sirens blared. A missile struck a row of houses in the Petropavlivska Borshchahivka district, sheering off several upper floors.
Tkachenko then swiftly revised the toll upwards to four, as a “body of the deceased has been found”. A falling concrete slab crushed and killed a 12-year-old girl. A nurse and a patient died when Kyiv’s cardiology institute took a direct hit. Another person was found dead under debris at a residential block, officials said.
Some residents fled to metro stations deep underground for safety. Many regions across the country were under air raid alerts. “At 6am there was a huge explosion. Everything started falling on our heads,” Lolita Isakova, 24, said. “We started to run in panic. My neighbour was covered in blood. He was looking for his wife and daughter. Everyone was screaming. We could hear booms.” She added: “Russia is a terrorist state. Fuck them.”
The Kyiv mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said the Ukrainian capital was under a “massive” assault and urged people to stay in shelters. Mark Serhiyiv, a 35-year-old army chaplain, said it was the second time Russian forces had destroyed his home. “I still can’t believe that the children are alive. It’s such a blessing from God. They were right under the roof when it hit them. The roof was torn off right above my eldest son’s bed,” he said.
He said at least six people had been wounded “as a result of the enemy’s attack”, five of whom were treated in hospital and one at the scene. “I’m from Melitopol. They occupied the city and took my home. I moved to Kyiv in 2024. Our Russian neighbour is crazy. They shoot and deliberately kill civilians. This is our reality.”
The governor of the south-eastern Zaporizhzhia region said Russian strikes there had wounded at least four people. More than 70 people were injured across the country, including three children whose apartment was hit in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia. On Sunday morning firefighters in Kyiv doused a burning car. Rescue workers and a digger shovelled up debris against a backdrop of smashed masonry and twisted rebar.
“Once again, residential buildings and infrastructure are being hit. Once again, it is a war against civilians,” Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, said. The head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said: “Once again, residential buildings and infrastructure are being hit. Once again, it is a war against civilians.” There will be a response to these actions. But the west’s economic blows against Russia must also be stronger.”
“There will be a response to these actions. But the west’s economic blows against Russia must also be stronger.” Poland’s military said it had scrambled fighter jets and put ground-based air defence systems on high alert in response to the strikes on Ukraine. The moves were preventive and intended to secure Polish airspace and protect citizens, especially in border areas with Ukraine, the military said.
Poland’s military said on X it had scrambled fighter jets in its airspace and put ground-based air defence systems on high alert in response to the Russian strikes in Ukraine. Poland closed the airspace near its southeastern cities of Lublin and Rzeszów, a key hub for aid to Ukraine, for several hours.
The moves were preventive and aimed at securing Polish airspace and protecting citizens, especially in areas adjacent to Ukraine, the military said. Speaking on Saturday in Kyiv after meeting Trump at the UN in New York, Zelenskyy had said Russia was preparing for a wider European conflict. “Putin will not wait to finish his war in Ukraine. He will open up some other direction. Nobody knows where. He wants that,” he said.
Poland also closed the airspace near its south-eastern cities of Lublin and Rzeszow until at least 0400 GMT on Sunday. He said the Kremlin was deliberately checking Europe’s capacity to protect its skies, after drone sightings in Denmark, Poland and Romania and the violation of Estonian airspace by Russian fighter jets. Denmark’s army said on Sunday that drones had been spotted flying over Danish military sites for the second night running.
Speaking in Kyiv after his meeting with Donald Trump at the UN in New York, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Russia was preparing for a bigger conflict. Zelenskyy suggested EU governments were struggling to deal with this new and dangerous threat. Ukraine spotted 92 drones flying towards Poland in a “choreographed” way earlier this month. It intercepted most of them, but 19 crossed into Polish territory where four were shot down.
“Putin will not wait to finish his war in Ukraine. He will open up some other direction. Nobody knows where. He wants that,” he said. Russia has denied it is responsible for the incursions or that it plans to attack any Nato country. The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, told the UN general assembly: “Any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response.”
Ukraine’s president said the Kremlin was deliberately checking Europe’s capacity to protect its skies, after drone sightings in Denmark, Poland and Romania and the violation of Estonian airspace by Russian fighter jets. More drones were spotted on Friday night above a Danish military base, and over a Norwegian base on Saturday. Speaking to reporters later, Lavrov said that if any country downed objects still within Russian airspace, “they will very much regret it”.
Zelenskyy suggested EU governments were struggling to deal with this new and dangerous threat. Earlier this month, Ukraine spotted 92 drones flying towards Poland in a “choreographed” way. It intercepted most of them. Nineteen crossed into Polish territory, where the Poles shot four down.
Russia has denied that it is responsible for the incursions or that it plans to attack any Nato nation.
The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, told the UN general assembly “any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response”.
Speaking later to reporters, Lavrov said that if any country downs objects still within Russian airspace, “they will very much regret it”.