Explosions heard across Ukraine’s capital as forces defend against ballistic missiles and drones targeting the city.
Kyiv was struck by a volley of ballistic missiles and drones overnight, causing extensive damage, killing at least two residents and injuring 11.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko, who posted on Telegram, reported that a hotel roof caught fire early Thursday morning.
Photographs circulating online showed a fire spreading uncontrollably from the upper floors of a building on Shevchenko Boulevard.
“Kyiv is under attack from ballistic missiles and UAVs,” Klitschko wrote, using the acronym for unmanned aerial vehicles.
He later confirmed that 11 people had been injured, with others trapped inside a damaged nine‑storey residential block, and noted that the roof of another high‑rise apartment building was ablaze.
AFP reports state that two fatalities were confirmed by city authorities.
Photos shared on unofficial Telegram channels show residents rushing into underground stations to shelter from the Russian strikes.
Journalists from AFP in Kyiv’s central and eastern districts heard more than a dozen explosions as Ukraine’s Air Force warned that ballistic missiles were approaching the city.
In the streets, residents took to shelters, carrying sleeping mats under their arms, according to AFP.
Zelenskyy Issues Urgent Warning Ahead of Russian Assault
The strikes on Kyiv came only hours after President Zelenskyy warned of an impending “massive Russian strike” and urged Ukrainians to seek shelter.
During a joint news conference in Dublin with Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Zelenskyy said, “Today, we have information about another massive Russian strike; we have relevant intelligence data.”
In a post on X, he added, “Immediately after this conversation, I am returning to Ukraine.”
He called on citizens to exercise heightened caution and to “stay safe and protect your families and children” by heeding air‑raid alerts.
“We know that Vladimir Putin has been preparing a massive strike against Ukraine for some time. That is exactly the threat we are facing tonight,” he added.
Zelenskyy also accused Russia of “completely refusing to end the war” that it launched in February 2022, despite Ukrainian efforts through all possible official and unofficial channels to convey readiness for meetings and meaningful negotiations. He argued that Putin “sees only further aggression against Ukraine and against other neighbours and Europe as a whole.”
