Russia launched a massive air assault across Ukraine overnight, striking the capital with drones and missiles in one of the most intense attacks in recent months.
Explosions thundered across Kyiv for hours, killing at least one person, damaging metro infrastructure, and setting fires in several districts. Poland scrambled fighter jets in response to the wave of Russian missiles.
The strike on Kyiv began just before midnight Sunday and continued into the early hours of Monday. A Kyiv Post reporter based in the capital’s Solomyanskyi district heard continuous blasts from Shahed drones targeting a nearby industrial zone from around 1:30 a.m. to 6 a.m.
Kyiv’s city authorities confirmed damage in at least five districts: Darnytskyi, Shevchenkivskyi, Dniprovskyi, Solomyanskyi and Obolonskyi. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said one person was killed and at least two others injured. A fire broke out in a supermarket, and multiple residential buildings suffered rooftop fires.
In Dniprovskyi, flames tore through kiosks, a kindergarten, and a non-residential building. In Shevchenkivskyi, fires erupted on two floors of an apartment block, and one person was rescued.
The entrance to the Lukianivska metro station was damaged. Emergency officials said smoke spread underground, briefly filling the sheltering area with acrid fumes. The red metro line was partially shut down, operating only between Akademmistechko and Vokzalna stations, city authorities said.
In the Solomyanskyi and Obolonskyi districts, what officials described as “falling drone debris” caused fires at warehouse facilities and an unoccupied housing complex. However, according to Kyiv Post correspondents based in the area, drones repeatedly struck industrial facilities in those districts without being intercepted by air defenses. No injuries were reported in those areas.
According to Ukraine’s Air Force, Russia launched a total of 450 aerial weapons in the attack, including 426 Shahed drones and decoys, five Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, 14 Kh-101 cruise missiles, four Kalibr cruise missiles from the Black Sea, and one Iskander-K missile. The launches came from multiple directions, including Russian territory and the Black Sea.
Eastern and western Ukraine were also hit. In Kharkiv, 12 drone strikes were recorded, including one near a residential building in the Kyivskyi district, according to Mayor Ihor Terekhov. Roads, tram lines, and electrical infrastructure were damaged. Fires also broke out at a civilian business.
Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov said Russian forces used Geran-2 drones in the attack.
In the Ivano-Frankivsk region, missiles and drones hit villages outside the city. Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv called it the largest assault on the region since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. Several people suffered minor injuries, and residential windows were blown out by shockwaves.
Poland’s Armed Forces said it had scrambled alert fighters and raised its air defense readiness in response to the Russian missile activity near its eastern border.
The attacks come amid a sharp escalation in Russian aerial strikes. Over the past two months, Russia has been launching hundreds of drones at Ukraine almost daily, often in near-nightly waves. On July 9, Ukraine reported a record assault, with 741 aerial targets launched in a single night.
Trump on June 14 said he had struck a deal with NATO to supply Kyiv with American air-defense systems and other weapons to Ukraine and threatened Russia with tariffs and sanctions, as he grows frustrated with Russian leader Vladimir Putin for rejecting a ceasefire and instead intensifying attacks.