Russia launches ‘largest drone attack’ on Ukraine since start of invasion

Russia launched its most intense drone attack on Ukraine on Saturday morning since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, targeting the Ukrainian capital, military officials said.

Kiev was the main target, Ukrainian air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk wrote on his Telegram channel.

In total, Russia launched about 75 Iranian-made Shahed drones against Ukraine, 71 of which were destroyed by air defenses, the Ukrainian armed forces said.

The attack was the most massive drone airstrike on Kiev, said Serhii Popko, head of the Kiev city government, noting that air defenses had shot down more than 60 air targets over the capital throughout the morning.

The attack on Kiev began at 4 a.m. local time, lasted more than six hours in waves and caused power outages in 77 residential buildings and 120 institutions, according to Popko.

At least five civilians were injured in the hours-long drone strike on Kiev, which damaged several buildings, including a kindergarten. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said an 11-year-old child was among the injured.

Our soldiers shot down most of the drones. Unfortunately not all, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. But we continue to work to strengthen our air defenses and shoot down more aircraft, he said.

In addition to Kiev, the regions of Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhiav, Mykolaiv and Kirovohrad were also targeted.

The attack was carried out on the morning of Holodomor Memorial Day, which commemorates the man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine that killed millions of Ukrainians between 1932 and 1933 and is celebrated on the fourth Saturday of November.