Russia launched a massive overnight missile and drone assault on Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, killing at least 20 civilians and injuring more than 90 others, Ukrainian officials said on Thursday, as Moscow described the attack as retaliation for recent Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil facilities.
The bombardment lasted about 11 hours, with repeated explosions rocking the capital overnight. Air raid sirens forced many residents to seek shelter in subway stations while emergency crews worked through the night to rescue people trapped beneath collapsed buildings.
Kyiv City Military Administration chief Tymur Tkachenko said the attack damaged about 30 sites across the city, most of them residential buildings and civilian infrastructure. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said around 20 apartment buildings sustained damage.
In one of the hardest-hit areas, people were trapped inside a damaged nine-storey residential building in the Desnianskyi district, while six floors of another apartment block collapsed in the Darnytskyi district.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said more than 90 people were injured in the strikes.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the bombardment as a "night of horror" for the capital.
Russia's Defence Ministry said the attack was carried out in response to Ukraine's long-range strikes on Russian oil facilities, which Moscow said had disrupted fuel supplies and increased pressure on the country's energy sector.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the military operation targeted only military or military-related facilities. However, Ukrainian authorities said the strikes heavily affected civilian neighbourhoods.
The latest attack came amid intensified Ukrainian long-range drone strikes targeting Russian oil refineries and energy infrastructure. Ukrainian officials say the campaign is intended to weaken Russia's war effort and increase pressure on President Vladimir Putin to engage in peace negotiations.
Despite diplomatic efforts, including initiatives backed by the administration of US President Donald Trump, no breakthrough has been achieved to end the war.
According to the United Nations, more than 16,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, a Russian guided bomb struck the central Dnipropetrovsk region, killing a seven-year-old girl and injuring four members of her family, including an 11-year-old girl, regional authorities said.