KYIV — Russian missile and drone strikes killed at least five people in Ukraine’s capital early on Thursday, Ukrainian officials said, as explosions rocked residential areas and emergency services responded to multiple sites of damage.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the overnight attack damaged residential buildings, with fires reported in several districts. Officials reported dozens of injured as rescuers searched rubble for possible survivors.
Ukrainian air force officials said Russia launched a large-scale barrage of missiles and drones targeting Kyiv and other regions. Air defenses intercepted many incoming projectiles, but strikes still hit civilian infrastructure, according to preliminary reports from city authorities.
The death toll was expected to rise as operations continued, with Klitschko and other officials citing at least five to 13 fatalities in Kyiv alone, depending on the latest updates from emergency responders. Dozens more were reported wounded, including some in critical condition.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had warned earlier of a potential major assault. Neighboring Poland scrambled fighter jets as a precaution during the attack, authorities there said.
Russia has not immediately commented on the strikes. The assault is the latest in a series of aerial attacks on Ukrainian cities amid the ongoing war.
Rescue operations were ongoing Thursday morning, with air raid alerts persisting in the capital. Further details on the scale of the attack and full casualty figures were still being verified.
