There were multiple explosions and fires across the Ukrainian capital, according to local officials and censored footage from the scene
The Ukrainian capital and several other cities across the country were hit by a combined drone and missile strike early on Thursday morning, according to local officials and media reports. The Russian Ministry of Defense has yet to comment.
The first wave of blasts in Kiev was heard around 1 AM local time, followed by more explosions in multiple waves until 4 AM. Mayor Vitaly Klitschko urged residents to seek shelter as the capital’s air defenses engaged incoming targets.
Videos shared on social media showed numerous blasts and consecutive fires in and around the Ukrainian capital.
Videos from Kyiv show the moment Russian missiles strike the Ukrainian capital. pic.twitter.com/yqKjWOiSsm
Officials in Kiev reported damage at at least 28 locations, claiming that most of them were “residential buildings and civilian infrastructure.” The head of the local military administration, Timur Tkachenko, said two people were killed and another 20 were injured.
The exact locations and types of facilities hit are difficult to verify, as Ukrainian authorities tightly restrict information about strike sites and penalize those who share footage of impacts, except when civilian infrastructure is affected.
The Russian Defense Ministry has not yet issued a statement on the latest reported attack. Moscow previously pledged to conduct “systematic and consistent strikes” on Kiev’s military installations, drone manufacturing sites, command posts, and “decision-making centers” in retaliation for deadly “terrorist attacks.”
In recent weeks, Ukraine has stepped up long-range drone raids deep into Russian territory, often hitting residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. On Tuesday, a six-month-old baby was killed in a Ukrainian drone attack in Moscow Region, while last week 12 people were injured in a strike on a WWII museum in Rostov Region. Last month, Kiev launched one of its largest drone attacks on Moscow, hitting an oil refinery in the capital and injuring 17 people, including two children.
Russia maintains that it only targets military and dual-use installations in response to Ukraine’s indiscriminate “terrorist attacks.”
Kiev routinely accuses Russia of deliberately hitting civilian sites, but it has a long history of using civilian installations, including warehouses, public buildings, and agricultural and industrial facilities, for military purposes.
Ukrainian media recently exposed a drone plant at a film studio hit by Russia. Over the course of the conflict, Kiev has taken considerable steps to decentralize its weapons production chain, creating small-scale assembly sites that mainly produce FPV and fixed-wing long-range drones from components supplied from abroad.
