Russia launched a prolonged combined air attack against Ukraine on Wednesday, May 13, while simultaneously deploying a new Shahed drone tactic aimed at overwhelming Ukrainian air defenses, according to Kyiv officials.
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) warned that Russia initially deployed a large number of attack drones in an effort to overload Ukraine’s air defense systems and attack civilian infrastructure.
The agency said Moscow could later launch a significant number of air- and sea-launched cruise missiles as well as ballistic missiles.
“The targets of Moscow are critical infrastructure and life-support facilities in major cities, including energy facilities, defense industry enterprises, and government buildings,” HUR said.
The agency added that Russia was attempting to pressure Ukraine after rejecting ceasefire proposals.
Defense Ministry advisor Serhiy “Flash” Beskrestnov said Russian forces launched Shahed drones in dense formations near the Belarus border, with the drones flying at a distance of 5-10 kilometers (3-6 miles) from the border “literally one after another.”
“The enemy is trying to overload our air defenses so that as many targets as possible break through deeper into the country toward the west,” Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram.
He added that Russian forces constantly adapt their drone tactics and conduct reconnaissance of Ukrainian electronic warfare (EW) systems and air defense positions before launching attacks.
“Our task is to predict the enemy’s moves,” he wrote.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the timing of one of Russia’s longest mass attacks against Ukraine was “clearly not accidental,” linking it to US President Donald Trump’s visit to China.
“Russia is clearly trying to spoil the broader political atmosphere and draw attention to its evil – at the expense of Ukrainian lives and infrastructure,” Zelensky said.
He said Russia launched at least 800 drones since the start of the day and continued sending waves of Shahed drones toward regions near NATO borders, including Zakarpattia, Lviv, Volyn, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Rivne regions.
According to Zelensky, Russian strikes also hit the Vinnytsia, Chernivtsi, Khmelnytskyi, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhzhia, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, and Kherson regions.
“As of now, dozens of people are known to have been injured, including children. Unfortunately, six people have been killed,” Zelensky said.
He added that Russia could still launch missiles following the drone waves and accused Moscow of trying to overload Ukraine’s air defense systems and maximize civilian suffering.
What is known about the ongoing attack
The Ukrainian Air Force reported multiple groups of Shahed drones flying across the country throughout the night and into Wednesday daylight hours.
According to the Air Force, drone groups were detected flying from the Chernihiv region toward the northern Kyiv region, while other drones moved from the Kyiv region toward the Zhytomyr region and further west toward the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi regions.
Additional drone groups were launched from the Black Sea toward Odesa and Mykolaiv regions, with some later heading toward Kirovohrad, Vinnytsia, and western Ukraine. Air defenses are operating in Odesa, regional governor Oleh Kiper said. Later he clarified that two men, aged 31 and 38, were wounded in the attack and taken to medical facilities. He said the victims were receiving all necessary assistance.
The attack also damaged the façade and windows of a residential building, as well as several passenger vehicles. Fires caused by the strike were extinguished by emergency responders.
Separately, in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, in the Odesa region, the roof of a three-story residential building was damaged by falling debris from a drone, causing a fire.
The Air Force also warned of enemy drones approaching Kyiv from the north.
The Zakarpattia region is experiencing its largest attack since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, regional governor Myroslav Biletskyi said. Explosions were reported in several communities across the region, though officials said further details would be released later.
In the Khmelnytskyi region, three people were reportedly wounded in the Russian attack and hospitalized in moderate condition, Khmelnytskyi Mayor Oleksandr Symchyshyn said. Later he clarified that drone debris reportedly fell onto the roof of a nine-story residential building, setting parked cars on fire. Two men, aged 31 and 38, were wounded in the attack and taken to medical facilities. He said the victims were receiving all necessary assistance.
Ivano-Frankivsk regional governor Svitlana Onyshchuk said a Russian strike hit a residential building in the region, injuring several people. According to preliminary information, the injuries were not severe, and all victims are receiving medical assistance. Local Telegram channels circulated videos showing the residential building on fire following the attack.
In the Cherkasy region, three men aged 41, 33, and 29 were injured during a Russian drone attack on the city of Smila, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (DSNS) said. All three were hospitalized and are receiving necessary medical assistance. Despite repeated threats of additional strikes, emergency responders extinguished fires at four separate locations. Bomb disposal experts inspected the targeted sites, while DSNS psychologists worked with victims and local residents, providing support.
Rivne regional governor Oleksandr Koval said Russia’s ongoing air attack hit civilian infrastructure in the region, including a residential building. Preliminary reports indicate that two people were killed and four wounded. Later, the DSNS updated the casualty toll in the Rivne region, saying three people were killed and six wounded in Russian drone attacks. All injured victims are receiving medical assistance.
In Kovel, in the Volyn region, a bus and several passenger cars were damaged when a drone crashed, according to local social media groups.
Emergency power outage procedures have been implemented in the Kolomyia district, according to Prykarpattyaoblenergo, an energy company that distributes electricity in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Power company crews are already working to restore power.
Air raid alerts remained active across large parts of the country Wednesday morning as Russian drones continued entering Ukrainian airspace in waves.
Poland also scrambled military aircraft and raised air defense readiness levels during Russia’s mass drone attack against Ukraine on Wednesday. Polish military officials said the measures were preventive and aimed at securing airspace near areas bordering Ukraine.
Moldova’s Defense Ministry said a drone entered the country’s airspace from Ukraine’s Vinnytsia region at around 4 p.m. on Wednesday, local outlet NewsMaker reports. Later the drone was spotted flying over the city of Balti by local residents.
According to the ministry, the drone continued moving south through Hincesti district, where it was tracked by the National Army’s airspace surveillance systems near the villages of Lapusna and Carpineni. Moldova temporarily closed airspace in the country’s northern zone during the incident.
Russia has repeatedly changed its drone tactics throughout the war, including altering flight altitudes, attack routes, and launch patterns to complicate intercept efforts and exhaust Ukraine’s air defense resources.
According to the Air Force, Russia launched 139 drones overnight, including Shahed drones, decoys and other unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from multiple directions, including Russia and occupied Crimea. Ukrainian air defenses shot down or electronically suppressed 111 drones by 8 a.m., the Air Force said.
In Dnipropetrovsk region Russian overnight attacks killed eight people and injured 11 others. In the Poltava region, drones struck an electrical substation, leaving more than 6,500 people without power and damaging residential buildings.
In Kharkiv, drone debris fell onto a road in the Shevchenkivskyi district, while an attack on infrastructure in the Kholodnohirskyi district sparked a fire.
In the Odesa region, Russia carried out a mass drone attack on industrial infrastructure, damaging warehouse and utility buildings and causing fires, though no casualties were reported.