Ukraine has suffered one of its largest aerial attacks since the start of the war, with officials confirming that Russia launched a combined 451 drones and missiles overnight, striking multiple regions including the capital, Kyiv.

Speaking to Ukrainian television, Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat said Russia deployed 407 Shahed strike drones, 38 cruise missiles, and six ballistic missiles in the latest onslaught. Ukrainian defences managed to intercept up to 30 missiles and over 200 drones, he said.

At least four people were killed in Kyiv, including three emergency service workers, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Twenty others were injured in what authorities are calling the second-largest aerial attack on Ukraine, surpassed only by Sunday night’s barrage, when 472 drones and missiles were fired.

The city’s air raid alert has since been lifted, but warnings remain active in other parts of the country.

In Lutsk, a city in the north-west, the mayor reported that Russia launched 15 drones and six missiles, injuring five people. Infrastructure damage has been reported across both cities, though assessments are ongoing.

The attack follows recent comments by former US President Donald Trump, who claimed earlier this week that Russian President Vladimir Putin had assured him “very strongly” during a phone call that Moscow would respond to Ukraine’s recent drone strike on Russian airbases.

Ukrainian officials have condemned the assault as a deliberate escalation and a continuation of Russia’s strategy to exhaust air defences and terrorise the civilian population.

Follow us on: