Russia hits Ukraine with largest drone attack yet

Russia struck Ukraine with the largest aerial bombardment of the 3.5 year war, hitting a government building at the heart of Ukraine’s capital for the first time. Their attacks killed at least four people, including an infant, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the drone and missile barrage killed four people and caused damage across the north, south and east of the country, including the cities of Zaporizhzhia, Kryvyi Rih and Odesa, as well as in the Sumy and Chernihiv regions.

“Such killings now, when real diplomacy could have already begun long ago, are a deliberate crime and a prolongation of the war,” Zelenskiy said in a post on X, issuing a fresh appeal to allies to strengthen Ukrainian air defences.

Just after sunrise, thick smoke could be seen rising into the clear blue sky from the burning top floor of the main government building, located in the historic Pecherskyi district, witnesses said.

Elsewhere in Kyiv, residential apartments were hit and damaged, with dozens of residents wrapped in blankets gathering on the streets outside to survey the damage to their homes as rescue workers fought to extinguish the flames.

The attack underlined growing pessimism in Ukraine and among allies that the war can be ended any time soon, with Russian President Vladimir Putin resisting calls for a ceasefire and emboldened by strengthening relations with China.

US President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has expressed growing frustration with Moscow since he met Putin last month, but has not yet imposed tougher sanctions on Russia.

Russia launched 805 drones against Ukraine overnight and 13 missiles, with Ukrainian air defense units downing 751 drones and four missiles, the air force said. That was the highest number of drones Russia has used to attack the country since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia’s defence ministry said it had carried out strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial complex and transport infrastructure, according to the Tass news agency. Both sides deny targeting civilians.