At least 13 people have been killed and 40 injured in the latest Russian strikes targeting the Ukrainian capital, Ukraine's prime minister said, as Kyiv continues to face a critical shortage of air defense missiles. The overnight attacks hit apartment blocks, warehouses, a children's hospital, and a school across the city, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attributed the deaths to the lack of air defense missiles, which Kyiv relies on Western allies to supply. In a Telegram post, he wrote, "As long as Ukraine does not have enough anti-ballistics, Russia will not seriously think about peace." He added, "The interceptors for the Patriots have not yet been replaced, and they are needed every day. Each additional missile saves the lives of our people."
Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko told the BBC that Ukraine is "absolutely unprotected" from ballistic missile attacks and "can't do anything" without interceptors. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today program, he said, "Russia is using this trying to destroy as much infrastructure as possible. For us it's very painful because we are dying here every day without these interceptors."
An update from the Ukrainian Air Force on Thursday morning implied that none of the Russian ballistic missiles used overnight were intercepted. The Russian defense ministry said it used air, land, and sea-based weapons to target military facilities and warehouses. Ukraine has relied on American supplies of Patriot interceptor missiles, but the US has used much of its stockpile in the Middle East and has been supplying less.
Zelensky's renewed plea for military aid came as he faced a political challenge from popular ex-defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who called for an election and launched a scathing attack on the government, claiming corruption has deprived the military of weapons. The strikes began around midnight local time, with air raid sirens sounding across the city, followed by around 20 Russian missiles. The attacks cut power to thousands of properties, plunging parts of the Kyiv region into darkness.
A day of mourning was declared for Friday. Russia used 168 drones and 44 missiles in the attack, mainly targeting Kyiv, the Ukrainian air force said, adding that air defenses shot down 146 drones and 39 cruise missiles. At one damaged residential building, 60-year-old Larysa Bondaruk was placed in an emergency triage area with her cat Chane and belongings while emergency workers cleared through the rubble.
In the broader Kyiv region, an attack in the Brovary and Boryspil districts killed one man and wounded seven. One person was killed and 11 injured in Donetsk Oblast, a local official said. In Russia, the defense ministry said 726 Ukrainian drones had been shot down after being launched at various regions. Romania's defense ministry said a drone crossed into its territory, triggering an air alert before crashing into an uninhabited area. The Polish military also launched "defensive air operations" to protect its airspace.
Recent weeks have seen both sides carry out massive air strikes, resulting in dozens of deaths. Ukraine has stepped up attacks deep inside Russia, targeting Moscow with a wave of 600 drones over the weekend. Two separate attacks on Russia this week killed at least 16 people, including one child. Since July, Ukraine has repeatedly targeted facilities of Wildberries, Russia's equivalent of Amazon, with the defense ministry claiming seven out of ten logistics centers have been "disabled."
Despite ongoing attacks and vulnerabilities on both sides, there has been little progress in diplomatic efforts to broker a ceasefire. Both sides accuse each other of targeting civilians. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, largely in the eastern border regions.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk