As many as 14 people have been killed overnight in deadly Russian drone strikes on the Ukrainian capital, officials said. Ukrainians report it was one of the biggest bombardments of the capital since the beginning of the full-scale invasion more than three years ago. Ukraine’s interior minister, Ihor Klymenko, said a total of 440 drones and 32 missiles had been launched at the country. In response, Russian troops reported to have downed 147 Ukrainian drones overnight, Moscow's defence ministry said.
The Russian strikes lasted for more than nine hours, sending residents fleeing to underground facilities and bunkers till the attacks finally ceased in the morning. Officials said a ballistic missile hit a nine-storey apartment building in one district, with a total of 27 districts of the city coming under fire.
"Waking up in an utter nightmare: people trapped under rubble and full buildings collapsed," Ukrainian MP Lesia Vasylenko wrote on X.
Russia has intensified its air raids against Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, with a tactic of sending large waves of drones and decoys designed to overwhelm Ukrainian air defences.
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Zelensky alleged that Russia’s new wave of strikes was “pure terrorism”. He accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of carrying out the large-scale strikes "solely because he can afford to continue this war. It is bad when the powerful of this world turn a blind eye to this," he said, adding, "It is the terrorists who should feel the pain, not normal, peaceful people."
Drone strikes also hit the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, killing one person and injuring at least 10 others, Klymenko said. The news will come as a blow to Zelensky and his administration, which had been hoping to secure US support at the conference for Ukraine's strategic and military goals.
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