A fresh barrage of Russian missiles and drone strikes hit Ukraine overnight into Monday, with Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv suffering widespread damage and civilian casualties. According to Ukraine's Air Force, Russia launched 450 missiles and drones, of which most were intercepted, but 23 found their targets, and debris fell in 12 areas. Nationwide air raid alerts were triggered, and at least two people were killed and 16 injured in the past 24 hours. The strikes caused significant destruction in civilian areas, igniting fires in homes, kindergartens, and shopping centers.
"Russian strikes are always an assault on humanity. In Kyiv, a kindergarten caught fire along with residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
In Kyiv, air raid sirens began at 11 p.m. Sunday and lasted until Monday morning. One person was killed and six were injured, according to police. Survivors described terrifying moments during the attack.
"There were three explosions. I was in bed when I heard the fourth. The door blew open and shards of glass landed on me," [Oleksandr] Berdychevskyi told CNN. “The balcony was on fire. I ran to the front door, but it was jammed.”
“They are monsters. Just monsters. How lucky that my granddaughter wasn’t home and that my son is alive,” his mother, Liliya Berdichevska, added.
In other parts of Kyiv, residents scrambled for safety in subway stations. Kateryna, a local woman, described the chaos as she sought refuge underground.
"It was very scary when the attack happened," she told Reuters. "There was lots of smoke and dust, we all got very scared. There was a little panic but, because life has taught us how to behave, we've all gotten used to it. We cared for each other and for the animals too."
Several fires broke out across Kyiv districts, damaging rooftops, supermarkets, homes, and even a kindergarten. In Kharkiv, 12 missile impacts were reported, with blazes near apartment buildings and widespread infrastructure damage.
Ukraine's Air Force noted that Russia used a combination of cruise, ballistic, and Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, the latter being particularly hard to intercept, Russia has ramped up its long-range night assaults, including a record-setting drone attack earlier this month with 728 drones and 13 missiles.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's own drones caused major disruptions at Moscow airports, grounding flights and forcing passengers to sleep in terminals. Over the weekend, 49 drones were downed in the Moscow region alone, according to officials, with others intercepted in nearby Russian regions.
Despite these escalations, diplomatic efforts persist. President Zelensky has renewed calls for peace talks.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was "ready to move quickly" on achieving a peace deal with Ukraine, but its "main goal" was to achieve its "objectives."
The last ceasefire meeting in Istanbul ended abruptly in June, with Ukraine rejecting Russia's expansive territorial demands, maintaining that it will not concede land for peace.
