FLASH
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At least 18 people have been killed and dozens more injured after a widespread missile and drone attack that Russia launched overnight on the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, according to local authorities.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, firefighters were battling flames in several parts of the city, while rockets or their debris hit residential buildings in several neighborhoods, as well as a hotel on one of Kiev's central boulevards.
Emergency services said 86 people were injured, 70 of whom were taken to hospital. Authorities warned the death toll could rise as search and rescue teams continued to work through the rubble.
Powerful explosions were heard for several hours as successive waves of drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles headed towards the capital. Ukrainian air defense systems tried to neutralize them in flight.
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that in one of the affected areas, the first six floors of a building collapsed after a direct hit. In another neighborhood, rescuers pulled residents from the rubble after part of a multi-story building collapsed.
Russia has repeatedly carried out combined missile and drone attacks on Kiev, and for several days there have been warnings that another large-scale offensive was being prepared.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had called on citizens on Wednesday to be especially careful.
"I ask you all to be very careful, take care of yourself and your children and use shelters. This is very important," Zelenskyy declared during a visit to Dublin.
Thousands of residents spent the night in metro stations, which are being used as air raid shelters. The latest attacks have renewed concern among citizens, even after more than four years of full-scale war.
At the end of May, Russia called on foreign diplomats to leave Kiev, warning that it would increase attacks on what it described as "decision-making centers."
Meanwhile, Russia is facing fuel shortages as a result of long-range Ukrainian drone attacks on oil refineries. Some Russian regions have imposed restrictions on gasoline supplies, while Russian authorities in occupied Crimea have declared a state of emergency.
Ukrainian officials have said they will continue military pressure on Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014 and which serves as a major logistical hub for Russian military operations in southeastern Ukraine.
Also on Thursday morning, the governor of the Russian region of Nizhny Novgorod announced that one person had died after a drone attack on industrial facilities.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the strikes on Ukraine used weapons launched from the air, land and sea, claiming the operation was a response to Ukrainian attacks. Moscow said the targets were military installations and energy infrastructure, while strikes were also reported in regions other than Kiev.
On the other hand, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who is on an official visit to Japan, called the claim that the Russian attacks are retaliation for Ukrainian operations "immoral."
"In this war, there is an aggressor and a state that is being defended. Russia has no right to carry out attacks on Ukraine, while Ukraine has the right to defend itself and strike legitimate military targets on Russian territory. The aggressor and the country that is being defended from aggression cannot be equated," Sybiha wrote on the X platform.
He reiterated Kiev's urgent request to allies for the supply of more air defense systems, describing last night as "a night of terror" for the Ukrainian capital.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko declared a day of mourning in Kiev on Friday. He said damage had been recorded almost throughout the city of about three million people, with many buildings suffering significant damage.
As a precautionary measure, Poland, a member of NATO and the European Union, scrambled fighter jets to monitor the situation near the border. Meanwhile, Finland temporarily imposed airspace restrictions over the Eastern Gulf of Finland.
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