Russia launched its largest overnight air attack of the war on Sunday, striking Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine, setting the main government building ablaze and killing at least three people, including an infant, Ukrainian officials said.
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko confirmed on Telegram that the government’s central building in Kyiv’s Pecherskyi district had been damaged for the first time since the invasion began, with its roof and upper floors engulfed in flames. “Rescuers are extinguishing the fire,” she wrote. Witnesses reported thick smoke rising from the building shortly after sunrise.
Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia deployed 805 drones and 13 missiles overnight, the largest drone assault since February 2022. Defence forces managed to shoot down 751 drones and four missiles. Despite those interceptions, falling debris and direct hits caused widespread destruction across the capital.
Timur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said the body of an infant was pulled from rubble in the Darnytskyi district, where a four-story apartment block was destroyed. A young woman also died there, while Mayor Vitali Klitschko said an elderly woman was killed in a bomb shelter. A pregnant woman was among 18 people injured. Fires and partial building collapses were reported across several neighborhoods.
In western Kyiv, falling debris damaged multiple residential blocks, including a 16-story building. Emergency officials shared images of shattered facades and collapsed floors. “Russia is deliberately striking civilian targets,” Tkachenko said.
Beyond the capital, strikes hit Kremenchuk, knocking out power and damaging a bridge across the Dnipro River. In Kryvyi Rih, attacks targeted transport infrastructure, while in Odesa, apartment buildings were set ablaze.
Svyrydenko urged allies to supply more weapons. “We will rebuild the buildings, but lost lives cannot be brought back,” she said. Poland confirmed it scrambled allied aircraft to monitor its skies as western Ukraine came under fire.
Moscow has not commented on the assault. Both sides deny targeting civilians, though tens of thousands have died since Russia’s invasion began.
