Russia Launches Record Air Strike on Ukraine With 805 Drones, 13 Missiles; Trump Weighs Sanctions
Russia launched its biggest air strike on Ukraine, firing 805 drones and 13 missiles. At least four killed, Kyiv’s government building hit, Trump signals tougher sanctions.
Russia’s record assault on Ukraine with 805 drones and 13 missiles set Kyiv’s government building ablaze and killed at least four, including an infant.
In its largest aerial assault since the start of the war, Russia launched a massive overnight strike on Ukraine, firing 805 drones and 13 missiles. The unprecedented attack killed at least four people, including an infant, and set Kyiv’s main government building ablaze for the first time since the invasion began.
Kyiv Under Fire
Thick smoke engulfed central Kyiv as flames tore through the top floor of a government building in the city’s historic Pecherskyi district. Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the strike as “a symbolic blow to one of the city’s most heavily defended areas.”
Rescue teams pulled the body of an infant from the rubble in Darnytskyi district, where a young woman also died. Ukraine’s Interior Ministry confirmed over 20 injuries in the capital, while air raid sirens lasted more than 11 hours.
Zelenskyy: “A Deliberate Crime”
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack, calling it a calculated effort to prolong the war.
- “Such killings now, when real diplomacy could have already begun, are a deliberate crime,” Zelenskyy said on X.
Widespread Damage Across Ukraine
- Ukraine’s air force reported intercepting 751 drones and four missiles, but several slipped through, hitting Odesa, Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, and Chernihiv.
- In Kremenchuk, multiple blasts damaged a bridge across the Dnipro River and disrupted electricity for residents, according to Mayor Vitalii Maletskyi.
- Ukraine responded with a strike on the Druzhba oil pipeline in Russia’s Bryansk region, claiming “comprehensive fire damage.”
Global Reaction
European leaders strongly condemned the attack. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said it proved that delaying tougher action against Moscow “made no sense.”
Russia insisted it targeted only Ukraine’s military-industrial sites and transport infrastructure, while both Moscow and Kyiv denied deliberately striking civilians.
Trump Signals Stronger US Sanctions
In Washington, US President Donald Trump described the assault as “a horrible waste of humanity,” while expressing hope for eventual resolution. He also hinted at a tougher stance, suggesting a second phase of sanctions could soon be imposed on Russia or its oil buyers — the clearest sign yet of escalating US pressure.
