KYIV: Russia unleashed a major missile and drone barrage on Kyiv early Friday, killing six people, starting fires and scattering debris as the sound of explosions boomed across the city, Ukrainian authorities said. A pregnant woman was among at least 35 people injured.
Emergency crews responded to multiple strikes during the night, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration. Russia used at least 430 drones and 18 missiles in the attack that left gaping holes in some city buildings, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Russia has waged a devastating aerial campaign against Ukraine since its all-out invasion of its neighbor nearly four years ago. US-led diplomatic efforts this year to stop the fighting have so far come to nothing.
Friday’s aerial assault, which also targeted Odesa in the south and Kharkiv in the northeast, was mostly aimed at Kyiv, where drones and missiles smashed into high-rise apartment blocks, according to Zelensky.
It was “a specially calculated attack to cause as much harm as possible to people and civilians,” he said in a post on Telegram.
